HENDO: Jordan Henderson ebook E-Book

Rob Mason

• Herausgeber: G2 Rights
• Kategorie: Sachliteratur, Reportagen, Biografien
• Sprache: Englisch

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2020

Beschreibung

Captain of Liverpool FC, Premier League Winners, FIFA Club World Cup winners and Champions League winners, Jordan Henderson is a player who has scaled football's pinnacles. Vice-captain of England who he helped reach the 2018 World Cup semi-final, Hendo is a colossus for club and country. Possessing an astute understanding of the game, he is the ultimate team player. In a sport increasingly overtaken by 30 second clips on You Tube and celebrity culture, Henderson is the sort of player who makes any team better but one who until now rarely gets the credit he deserves. If I had to name someone I regard as the ultimate professional, then Jordan would come right at the top of the list. He is selfless, he puts himself at the back of the queue because he looks after everyone else first. He puts Jordan Henderson last is the verdict of Steven Gerrard, the legend he succeeded as skipper at Anfield but a man whose achievements for both the Reds and the Three Lions Hendo now surpasses. Liverpool won the Premier League for the first time in 30 years this season and Jordan will be presented with the Premier League trophy after the last match of the season against Chelsea on July 18. He is also now favourite to lift the LFC and PFA Player of the Year Awards. Author Rob Mason is perfectly qualified to write this affectionate tribute to Jordan as he has followed his career from his early days at Sunderland (where Rob worked as the communications manager) through the years at Liverpool where the club has finally won its 19th league championship with Jordan as their hugely popular captain.

Leseprobe

HENDO

THE JORDAN HENDERSON STORY

by Rob Mason

CONTENTS

CHAPTER ONE #PLAYERSTOGETHER

CHAPTER TWO ALL THAT GLITTERS ISN’T GOLD

CHAPTER THREE NEVER REPLACE STEVIE G

CHAPTER FOUR CHOOSING TO BE DIFFERENT

CHAPTER FIVE SENT TO COVENTRY

CHAPTER SIX SEEING THE LIGHT

CHAPTER SEVEN OLD HEAD TO LEARN FROM

CHAPTER EIGHT DEATH BY FOOTBALL

CHAPTER NINE JURGEN AND JORDAN

CHAPTER TEN ENGLAND

CHAPTER ELEVEN THE FUTURE

APPENDIX STATISTICS TO END OF PREMIER LEAGUE SEASON 2019/20

INTRODUCTION

From June 2019 to July 2020 Jordan Henderson captained Liverpool to the Champions League, UEFA Super Cup, FIFA Club World Cup and finally at long last for the Reds to the Premier League title. It was the first time Liverpool had been champions of England since they clinched the title in the season before Jordan was born in the summer of 1990, a time before the Premier League had even started.

Hendo: The Jordan Henderson story tells the story of a footballer who has achieved all this and more. In an era where so many players put themselves and not the team first Jordan Henderson stands out from the crowd by always putting the team before himself. So often criticised by supporters as he tried to achieve what Jurgen Klopp described as, ‘the most difficult job in the last 500 years of football’ by replacing Steven Gerrard, let Gerrard be the judge. Stevie G himself says of Hendo, “If I had to name someone I regard as the ultimate professional, then Jordan Henderson would come right at the top of the list. He is selfless, he puts himself at the back of the queue because he looks after everyone else first. He puts Jordan Henderson last.”

‘Hendo’ traces the story of Jordan’s rise to the top at Liverpool featuring his stints under King Kenny Dalglish who signed him, Brendan Rodgers who he had to win around but who appointed him captain and Jurgen Klopp who has made him a multiple winner. With contributions from people who coached him when he was as young as six, through his youth team years, early loan with Coventry City and rise to full England status with Sunderland this book follows the path of a player who has become admired and respected throughout the game.

Having followed Jordan’s career since seeing him make his debut at Under 18 level he has always been someone I have seen invariably represent all that is good about football. During the coronavirus pandemic that cost so many people their lives and suspended the 2019-20 season, Jordan’s initiative in bringing about the #PlayersTogether project illustrated that being the ultimate team player extended to warranting that accolade off the pitch as well as on it.

Rob Mason

July 2020

Rob has written more than 50 football books, mostly on Sunderland but also on West Ham United, Burnley and Ipswich Town. He also produced ‘From Zero to Hero’ The Gareth Southgate Story, as well as Mirror Football’s Ultimate Guide to the Premier League in 2020 and 2021.

CHAPTER ONE

#PLAYERS TOGETHER

Positional strength is one of Jordan Henderson’s greatest attributes. Not just with regard to his own position but his whole team’s. Watch Hendo play and you will see that not only does he automatically cover for anyone who is drawn out of position but he’ll direct others to do the same. This isn’t simply a reactive response but a pro-active one. Henderson has long been adept at making runs that make space for team-mates to exploit. Rarely if ever does he get the credit for this unselfishness but in the case of #PlayersTogether it was there for all to witness.

As the nation pondered players on their PlayStations or counting their money during the Coronavirus Lockdown of the Spring of 2020 Henderson’s hopes of imminently lifting the Premier League crown were put on hold while he dreamt up a scheme of organising Premier League players as a whole to do something positive in the face of awful adversity.

No one doubts that Premier League footballers earn vast amounts of money. Some ostentatiously flaunt their wealth but the vast majority do not, living quiet lives and trying to ensure that if they attract the attention of the press it is for the back pages and not the front. A stranger to the front pages of the national tabloids Jordan found himself there early in April 2020 not because of some misdemeanour or error of judgement but due to his leadership in contacting every other Premier League captain to forge a way forward for footballers to independently make a significant financial contribution to helping the National Health Service at a time when every doctor, nurse, hospital cleaner or other employee was waking up every day and knowing that when they went to work they were putting their own life at risk and with it the consequences for them and their families.

Suddenly the pressure that people talk about in sport seemed laughable. Playing football, golf, tennis or whatever your chosen game is after all a game. There may be high level stakes involving prestige, money or both but nothing to compare with thinking coming to the aid of stricken people could see you in serious danger yourself.

AFC Bournemouth captain Simon Francis was one of those to confirm that Henderson was the man behind the players’ initiative. He told the BBC, “Jordan took the initiative to pitch the idea to the rest of the lads and it was a no-brainer for us.” A player who made the journey from League One to the Premier League with the Cherries, Francis added, “It's a great chance for players to show how much the NHS means to us - a cause that is close to a lot of players' hearts.” The Cherries skipper’s view was backed up by his vice-captain Andrew Surman who added in the Bournemouth Daily Echo, “I have to take my hat off to Jordan Henderson for what he has done with the fund he has set up.”

Conor Coady, the Wolves skipper was another to acknowledge Henderson’s leadership, 'Jordan was brilliant in terms of setting up and taking the initiative and moving forward with it and then getting in contact with everybody. As soon as he did, everybody was on board straight away. So it's a brilliant, brilliant thing that he's set up and something that'll affect a lot of people”

Burnley captain Ben Mee first played against Henderson in 2008, contesting a two-legged FA Youth Cup semi-final in his days with Manchester City while Jordan was with Sunderland. The Clarets captain wrote in the Guardian, “Jordan Henderson might be the captain of the European champions but he is also a working-class lad from Sunderland who deserves full credit for bringing us all together, showing what makes a true leader. As a group we just wanted to do something positive, and we feel we have taken a step towards achieving it. From the moment Jordan called me, the Premier League captains have worked tirelessly to ensure we could get #PlayersTogether in place in such a short time. There has been great collective urgency to help in any way possible, while at the same time ensuring our funds are directed to the places that are most needed. Naturally, such a complex matter needs time to sort, but our frank discussions always had the same purpose: to help in any way we can.”

Government Heath Secretary Matt Hancock had annoyed many when he said on 2 April 2020, “Given the sacrifices that many people are making, including some of my colleagues in the NHS who have made the ultimate sacrifice…I think the first thing that Premier League footballers can do is make a contribution, take a pay cut and play their part.”

A self-claimed supporter of Newcastle United, Hancock’s lack of knowledge of football was illustrated a couple of months later when he referred to Daniel Rashford rather than Marcus Rashford after the Manchester United striker’s success in forcing a government U-turn on proving meal vouchers for underprivileged children.

Andros Townsend, Robert Snodgrass and Sam Allardyce were amongst those to criticise Hancock for targeting footballers, when in a government of millionaires, but Bournemouth’s Simon Francis was quick to point out that Henderson had been working away quietly behind the scenes before the Health Secretary made his ill-judged comments, “I don't want it to seem like it was a knee-jerk reaction to what has been said in the media - it wasn't that at all. I spoke to Jordan in the morning of the day Matt Hancock came out and made his comments, so it was bad timing. With the problems we have across the country, for him to pick out footballers was disappointing.”

Typically, reports in The Times spoke of Henderson not wanting to be credited with the initiative. Notably when #PlayersTogether announced themselves to the world with a statement it was unsigned by any individuals. This further strengthened the collective ownership of the project which reportedly would see the #PlayersTogether fund administered by Jordan along with the captains of Manchester United, Watford and West Ham: Harry Maguire, Troy Deeney and Mark Noble. These are some of the most highly respected men in the game. Maguire of course is an international team-mate of Henderson, and like Jordan, came to one of the country’s most prominent clubs having started with his local team, in Maguire’s case Sheffield United who were relegated to League One early in his career.

#PlayersTogether’s announcement on 8 April 2020 stated that over the course of the past week a group of Premier League players had conducted numerous talks, ‘With a vision of creating a contribution fund that can be used to distribute money to where it’s most needed in this COVID 19 crisis; helping those fighting for us on the NHS frontline as well as other key areas of need. This is a critical time for our country and for our NHS, and we are determined to help in any way that we can.”

The statement went on to confirm that after “extensive conversations between a huge number of players from all Premier League clubs we have created our own collective player initiative #PlayersTogether and have partnered with NHS Charities Together.” Further, the announcement also made clear that #PlayersTogether was about players collaborating together to create a voluntary initiative, separate to any other club and league conversations, adding that their thoughts and prayers went out to everybody affected by the crisis. ‘By sticking together, we will get through this’ it added.

These words looked like the work of a professional PR company but the sentiments were genuine and that line about getting through this by sticking together was pure Hendo: looking for teamwork to produce a result.

Setting up such a group as #PlayersTogether was no simple task. Quite apart from the difficulties of getting in touch with everyone there was plenty to negotiate through a long series of individual and conference calls. Not everyone earns the same amount within one squad let alone 20 different ones at clubs of varying sizes and most people don’t want to reveal what they earn. Being careful not to make some individuals look less generous than others was just one of the hurdles to overcome. With an initial aim of looking at players’ take home pay for what should have been the last two months of the scheduled season in April and May a basis was laid via each club captain for players to donate a percentage of their monthly wage to the scheme with any additional donations warmly welcomed.

This was achieved in the face of some clubs looking for wage reductions from their players as clubs lost some of their revenue streams. Another factor to overcome was the wishes of players from overseas to see their contributions aid Covid 19 responses in their home countries.

Taking control of their own situation and making their own voluntary contributions to the fund enabled the footballers of the Premier League to do something positive in a situation where they were otherwise powerless but simultaneously to maintain control over how and where this money was spent rather than seeing it disappear into a fund administered by clubs or the league itself.

Match of the Day front-man Gary Lineker was amongst those quick to praise the scheme tweeting, “Footballers are doing their bit as I was confident they would. Let’s hope that others that are in a position to help, those that weren’t unfairly targeted, do likewise. Proud of our players.” The top-scorer at the 1986 FIFA World Cup soon added a follow-up tweet having seen a large number of players swiftly show their support for #PlayersTogether via Instagram, Lineker saying, “Absolutely brilliant. Well played to each and every one of them. Young men setting the right example.” Lineker, who captained England when winning 18 of his 80 caps then completed his hat-trick of tweets with “Great job” accompanied by three clapping emojis.

Former Liverpool striker Stan Collymore was amongst many others to voice their approval of the Anfield skipper for the lead role he had played in bringing his fellow professionals from all 20 top flight clubs together. Speaking to the Daily Mirror the ex-England international proposed that an MBE or OBE should be headed Hendo’s way, saying, ‘The conscience he has shown football these past couple of weeks is more important than any trophy he will ever lift for Liverpool. Henderson has been the driving force behind the #PlayersTogether campaign and no-one should under-estimate the work he will have had to put in. A few might say, ‘What are you talking about Stan? It will only have meant him calling a few of his mates.’ Yes he will have had a couple of numbers through England, but even in the best of times getting hold of the rest of them wouldn’t have been easy. Don’t under-estimate either how much work will have had to go into having chats with everyone and working out with 19 other fellas the mechanics of what you need to do and the right vehicle for the support you want to give. That isn’t easy at all. Then you have to make sure the money gets to the right places - the NHS and other community initiatives set up to help people during the Coronavirus Pandemic – and again it’s not something that’s straightforward. The way Jordan has conducted himself has been exemplary.”

Sure to become an outstanding pundit of the future because of his honesty in front of the camera, Watford’s Troy Deeney backed up Collymore’s assessment on Match of the Day X, “You're talking about getting every player from every Premier League team all on the same page, so it took a lot of work in between the captains and the players, but massive shout out to Jordan Henderson, he's done a lot of groundwork, him and James Milner. We've got a WhatsApp group with all the captains, so it's just a case of talking, 'what do you think about this? What do you think about that?' and it's everyone's input. We've all raised a huge sum of money and it's hopefully all going to the right people as well. It shines a good light on what football is really all about.”

Like Henderson James Milner is another character who gives the lie to the stereotypical image of the spoilt brat footballer. “Jordan has done an incredible job” he noted. “I wouldn’t like to see his phone bill and probably the stick he’s had from his missus the amount of time he’s been on the phone over the last few weeks.”

It wasn’t just players who were impressed. Fans’ message board were full of compliments, especially those regarding His current and former clubs. On the Liverpool site ‘We Climbed the Hill in Our Own Way’ for instance ‘Peabee’ commented, “He’s great. A massive heart and the motivation to do good off his own back. People will point out that they’re wealthy but I don’t see any billionaires going to this effort…While Hancock was having a go at rich ‘working class’ lads Henderson had already put this together.’

Meanwhile on Sunderland’s ‘Ready to Go’ message board, ‘Well done Jordan. Class’, ‘No words for this man can do him justice’ and ‘Not surprised. A great role model for kids and young players’ were amongst the first comments to be made about Jordan after the announcement of #PlayersTogether.

Still failing to impress many football people both inside and outside the game, Health Secretary Hancock tweeted a positive response saying, “Warmly welcome this big-hearted decision from so many Premier League footballers to create #PlayersTogether to support NHS Charities. You are playing your part” but many felt he could and should instead have been directing his ire at tax-avoiding multinationals and perhaps some not a million miles away from his own government.

While #PlayersTogether earned a lot of media coverage it is far from the only thing Henderson has done to help others. The month before the announcement of #PlayersTogether Henry Winter revealed in The Times that with football suspended the matchday food collection points of Fans Supporting Foodbanks on Merseyside had taken a hit at which point Henderson had contacted local MP Ian Byrne to offer the support of Liverpool’s players, “Jordan told me that he’d seen our appeal and the players wanted to help” revealed Mr. Byrne, “… the players have committed to covering all of the shortfalls that we will incur as a result of not being able to hold our usual match day collections.”

Just as after striking a defence splitting pass Henderson doesn’t stand there admiring it but stays on the move, after creating #PlayersTogether he was still looking to do more. By early May he was leading a drive to raise more cash for the NHS with a new scheme called #shirtsforheroes. This involved every first teamer from Premier League clubs signing a shirt and having them raffled on eBay.

Typically Jordan maintained a low profile despite playing the leading role in establishing #PlayersTogether, his aim being the fulfilment of a target not self-aggrandisement. As this book will make clear there cannot be a footballer who is more devoted to the game than Jordan Henderson. His initiative in creating #PlayersTogether to benefit the NHS at a time of genuine crisis illustrated that the Liverpool captain is a real leader whether on the pitch or not.

Jurgen Klopp is renowned for his touch-line passion. Usually a charming character off the pitch he metamorphosises into a whirling dervish dancing along the touchline in the heat of high-octane matches. Yet with his reigning European and World champions having nine games to secure the maximum two wins they would require to guarantee their first domestic league title since the month before Jordan Henderson was born, Klopp assumed statesman-like stature.

As football was suspended on 13 March 2020 at a time when ten deaths had been reported in the UK due to Covid 19 Liverpool’s manager commented, “First and foremost, all of us have to do what we can to protect each other. In society I mean. This should be the case all the time in life, but in the moment I think it matters more than ever. I’ve said before that football always seems the most important of the least important things. Today football and football matches really aren’t important at all. Of course we don’t want to play in front of an empty stadium and we don’t want games or competitions suspended, but if doing so helps one individual stay healthy – just one – we do it. No questions asked. If it’s a choice between football and the good of wider society it’s no contest. Really, it isn’t.”

Klopp’s comments contrasted with Liverpool legend Bill Shankly’s most famous quote, “Some people believe football is a matter of life and death. I am very disappointed with that attitude. I can assure you it is much, much more important than that.” Always a man of the people, ‘Shanks’ may well have reconsidered this in the situation Liverpool leaders Klopp and Henderson were faced with early in 2020 but the actions of the pair demonstrated genuine class at a time when more than one representative of other Premier League clubs were issuing statements where the chief beneficiary was evidently their own club. Liverpool’s craving for a first title since before the creation of the Premier League was well known but Klopp’s concern for the public was genuine and Henderson’s leadership in contacting every other Premier League captain to see what they could do to offer practical help was arguably more admirable that whatever he or anyone else for that matter has achieved or will achieve on a football pitch.

CHAPTER TWO

ALL THAT GLITTERS ISN’T GOLD

“He is the best midfielder in the world in his position” is not an opinion on Hendo even many ardent Koppites might venture. The statement came at the beginning of 2020 from Jorge Jesus, manager of Brazilian giants Flamengo, the 2019 Brazilian and Copa Libertadores champions and the man named Brazil’s coach of the year for 2019. The former Benfica and Sporting Lisbon boss had just seen his side lose the FIFA Club World Cup final to Liverpool and had no doubt who was the key player, the man who makes Liverpool tick.

In the late sixties when Manchester United ruled Europe and had three of the world’s best players in George Best, Bobby Charlton and Denis Law aficionados often reckoned the man who made United tick was midfielder Paddy Crerand. Many didn’t realise how important Crerand was until he was missing. Crerand was a different player to Henderson, nowhere near as mobile or with the same stamina but he could pass, and like Hendo has a brain which is the football equivalent of Stephen Hawking.

Jesus is not the only person to rate Henderson as the world’s best midfielder. A huge number of Liverpool’s goals involve world class wing-backs Trent Alexander-Arnold and Andy Robertson. They both know how good Hendo is. Alexander-Arnold described Jordan as ‘the best midfielder in the world’ in an interview in January 2020 while three months later when Andy Robertson was asked whether Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo was the world’s best player his instant answer was, “You heard Trent, Hendo.”

Pundits picking the best 11 individuals in the world might not go for Henderson, perhaps picking instead players capable of more flashy moments that thrill YouTube viewers. Remembering that if you want great individuals tennis and golf are the sports for you, in a team game a player like Hendo with the mentality to always utilise his talents to the ultimate benefit of the side is a player who his team mates recognise the true worth of.

Dietmar Hamann and Steve Nicol are amongst the many other top professionals to understand exactly what Jordan contributes. Having won six major honours in his seven years as a holding midfielder at Anfield Hamann has an appreciation of a player who has shown he can excel in that number six role, as well as playing more expansively when asked to. “I remember when Henderson signed, he cost about £20m quid and I think a lot of people said he would never be a Liverpool player” said the former World Cup finalist. “Then he took on the captaincy which is not an easy thing because they are big boots to fill following Stevie as the captain of this club. So it just goes to show if you keep believing in yourself and stay determined what can be done. He has improved every week and season, he fully deserves all the accolades he is getting now. If you tell (sic) somebody after two seasons that he would have been a Champions League-winning captain, they would have said, ‘Not in a million years’. But that shows the character of the player and man and you have to take your hat off to him for what he has done.”

Steve Nicol won four league titles, three FA Cups and the European Cup with Liverpool. He too is massively impressed with what Henderson brings to the Reds. In May 2020 he told ESPN FC that Jordan had made a bigger impact on the club than the exceptionally highly regarded Xabi Alonso. “Well you have to say that Henderson’s been more effective because Liverpool have won the Champions League and he’s pushed them…As great a footballer as Alonso was, I think the influence that Henderson has had on this team has been bigger than Alonso had. Listen, as football players, Alonso’s a better technician than Jordan Henderson. I don’t think that’s in question. So it becomes the biggest impact and I think no doubt Henderson’s made a bigger impact in this Liverpool side than Alonso did for the team he played for.”

Jake Livermore has never played for Liverpool although he sounds as if he should. Playing the game of building the ultimate player with ‘The Athletic,’ when considering the engine of a perfect player the West Brom midfielder had no doubt, “It has to be Jordan Henderson. He just doesn’t stop. ‘Energy’ is the word that sums him up in terms of his work rate and resilience. I have played with him for England, but I’ve also played against him a lot and I’ve always noticed that he’s very good in terms of energy and stamina.”

Closer to home, another midfielder to recognise how Hendo helps his team above and beyond what some might appreciate is Georginio Wijnaldum, “I've played with a few players who have great leadership. I have to say, Kevin Strootman and Jordan Henderson were, I think, above the other ones” he told Sky Sports in May 2020. “Mark van Bommel was also a good leader and a good captain, but out of the three of them, I have to choose Henderson. It can be annoying [when he is cajoling teammates], but if you think about why he's doing it, it's only to help you as a person and the team. So if you think about it in that way, you always appreciate it, so we are really happy with the way Henderson is.”

So how good is Jordan Henderson? Is he the world’s best midfielder or should he not be a fixture in the Liverpool and England line-ups? Tony Cascarino says he isn’t just Liverpool’s player of their 2019-20 Premier League winning season but is in fact the Reds player of the decade. Speaking on Talksport the former Chelsea, Villa, Marseille and Republic of Ireland forward said of Hendo, “Okay he might not have been as good as Steven Gerrard. Luis Suarez had his brilliance for a year – two years probably. And you’ve had some great players play for the club; Salah has been brilliant for two years, like Mane, and there are a huge amount of players. But if you’re talking about 2010 to 2020, Jordan Henderson has done nine years there and he has ended up being part of that side under every manager so I can’t see how it can be anybody but Jordan Henderson.”

Cascarino has a point about consistency. During the decade from 2010 to 2019 Jordan played in more Premier League games than any other player, his 308 appearances being two more than James Milner and Ben Foster.

Since joining Liverpool just before his 21st birthday in 2011 Henderson had ran his heart out for Dalglish, won over Rodgers and progressed under Klopp. However until the end of May 2019 a League Cup winner’s medal won in his first season, and a batch of runners’ up medals, were meagre reward at a club like Liverpool used to glittering success.

All that changed on June 1st 2019 when Jordan captained his club to Champions League success. This was followed up within a few months by the addition of the UEFA Super Cup and that FIFA Club World Cup where he so impressed Jorge Jesus, but for many the Holy Grail was still to be found. Liverpool were league champions when Hendo was born in 1990, having lifted the title under the man who signed him, King Kenny Dalglish. They had never won it since, never having got their hands on the coveted Premier League trophy, something not achieved throughout the era Liverpool were led by the iconic Gerrard. Had it not been for the coronavirus crisis that closed down sport in the spring of 2020 Hendo’s side would have claimed the Premier League long before 25 June when they finally did so. Raising the top domestic trophy to add to the clean sweep of major European and World honours was the climax of a dream year in which Jordan was named BBC Sport Player of the Year long before the season ended, with the likelihood that come the end of the campaign there would be further honours to follow.

In a unique season where the final stages were carried out before a world watching only on TV and not in the ground, Liverpool’s title was finally sealed without them even playing. Twenty four hours after demolishing Crystal Palace 4-0 the squad gathered to watch Manchester City fail to win at Chelsea, thereby guaranteeing what had been all but a mathematical certainty for ages: that is that Jordan Henderson had become the first ever man to captain Liverpool to the Premier League title. It capped a golden 389 days that begin with Hendo raising the Champions League trophy. “To finally get over the line is a relief but also an amazing feeling. It's a unique feeling and one that I'm very proud of.” Hendo told his club’s website. “I've been so honoured to be part of this football club right from the first moment that I came and to go on the journey to be with this manager, this group of players, these fans - it's been so special.”

Everyone likes a winner. With Liverpool filling their trophy cabinet once again boundless praise has come the captain’s way but the contribution of a player who has always concentrated on getting the job done for the team and not hogging the headlines as an individual has not changed. It is simply the perception of him in some people’s eyes that has. Henderson has always merited the recognition he is now getting in the reflection of the glory of those trophies he has raised.

It wasn’t just Jordan’s trophy cabinet that was being filled. Nine months after the sensational Champions League comeback against Barcelona his wife gave birth to a son, a brother to their two young daughters.

The maturity that comes with being a father of three children as well as a devoted son became better known to the wider world when the tragic consequences of the Coronavirus pandemic led to Jordan becoming more of a national figure. Suddenly he wasn’t simply a trophy winning Liverpool captain – there have been lots of them – but a person who featured on the news pages as well as the back pages. A clean living lad, focussed on football and family rather than frivolity Hendo had to this point been a stranger to the non-football pages of the papers – except for those that wanted to send paparazzi photographers to snap Hendo and his wife on holiday beaches. There was an attempt to turn a November 2016 trip to a Bournemouth lap-dancing bar with Adam Lallana on their day off from England duty into a minor scandal. For the tee-total Henderson this was a one-off out of character story that was blown out of all proportion.

In April 2020 Hendo appeared on the news pages, not due to stories of a nondrinker possibly drinking but because of the way he took his leadership role beyond the football stage to the national stage. Jordan did this by leading his fellow professionals from across the Premier League to significantly contribute financial support to the fight against the virus.

By this stage Henderson commanded the utmost respect from his fellow professionals. He had always had this due to his selfless and consistent displays for club and country, but by now looked up to as the captain of the European champions he had undoubtedly gone up a level in the eyes of the wider footballing world.