NewsLiverpool's Greatest - No.25: Jordan Henderson
Years: 2011-2023
Appearances: 492
Goals: 33
Trophies: League Cup (2012, 2022), Champions League (2019), UEFA Super Cup (2019), FIFA Club World Cup (2019), Premier League (2019-20), FA Cup (2022)
Having almost left the club after a single season, Jordan Henderson captained Liverpool to domestic, European and world honours in the modern era.
The Reds saw off strong competition to sign the midfielder, who had shot onto the scene with boyhood team Sunderland, during the summer of 2011.
Henderson would spend much of his debut campaign at Anfield on the right flank and made 48 appearances under Kenny Dalglish as Liverpool reached the finals of the League Cup and FA Cup, winning the former.
But then with Dalglish replaced by Brendan Rodgers in the dugout and change afoot within the squad, Henderson was included as a possible trade in the club’s negotiations to sign Clint Dempsey from Fulham.
He refused the move, stayed at the Reds and responded to the sense of rejection by offering an outstanding season in a title-challenging side.
Henderson played 35 times in the Premier League in 2013-14 as Rodgers’ attack-minded team finished second, with the No.14’s absence due to a three-game suspension certainly felt when Liverpool stumbled late on.
Hard-running, determined, vocal and better on the ball than perhaps given credit for, he was steadily blossoming into the full package the club had believed they were recruiting.
He scored seven goals and set up 14 during a difficult 2014-15 season collectively, before his rising status was reflected in being chosen to replace the iconic Steven Gerrard as club captain.
Henderson’s leadership qualities continued to be crucial when Jürgen Klopp was appointed manager in October 2015. Indeed, his standard-setting would underpin a generation of new success for the Reds.
As progress took Liverpool back to Champions League qualification, an appearance in the final in 2018 and Premier League title contention, the England international was soon adding trophy lifts to his responsibilities as skipper.
The ‘Hendo shuffle’ debuted in Madrid on June 1, 2019 as he became the fifth man to collect Old Big Ears for the club, Tottenham Hotspur having been defeated 2-0.
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Watch on YouTubeThe midfielder had played in 11 of the games on that run to glory, including a display in the sensational semi-final comeback against Barcelona that saw him fall to the turf in exhaustion at the end of a 4-0 win.
Victories in the UEFA Super Cup and FIFA Club World Cup came in 2019-20 alongside the honour all at Liverpool coveted most: a first league championship for 30 years.
The captain featured in 30 matches and chipped in with nine goal contributions as Klopp’s men tallied a club-record 99 points during a campaign that was prolonged – and completed without supporters present – due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Henderson’s impact was acknowledged by his selection as the Reds’ Player of the Season and the Football Writers’ Association’s Footballer of the Year.
He often filled in as an emergency centre-back in a difficult 2020-21 and then clocked up 57 outings in the next season as Liverpool mounted a quadruple attempt, winning the League Cup and FA Cup while finishing runners-up in the league and Champions League.
Henderson had neared 500 games for the club by the end of 2022-23, after which he called time on his dozen-year stint.
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