6-1 Stoke beating still raw for Jordan
Henderson’s humiliation
THIS is an important moment for Jordan Henderson. It is tradition for Liverpool’s captain to address the ‘state of the nation’ on a summer tour, to deal with thorny issues and assess future prospects.
For 12 years, Steven Gerrard handled it with aplomb, always speaking with brutal honesty. As he sits down on a terrace at the plush Club Saujana resort, Liverpool’s base in Malaysia, Henderson knows his words will be scrutinised like never before.
‘I don’t think there will ever be another Stevie Gerrard in terms of talent and leadership; everything about him really,’ said Henderson. ‘I’ve taken as much as I could from him and I will try to use that. I still speak to him on a regular basis.
‘He always tells me that if I need any advice, he is always on the end of a phone. But going forward, I have got to do what I believe is right and what I want to do.’
So now comes Henderson’s first test: he must pick up the pieces of the wreckage from the Britannia Stadium on May 24, when Stoke blitzed them 6-1. For all the signings Liverpool have made since that calamity, they remain under suspicion.
‘It will be a day that many of us will never forget,’ said Henderson. ‘The way we played, the result, the goals we conceded. Everything. It went from bad to worse. At halftime in the dressing room, a few of us tried to say some things to get everyone going and get something back but then full-time came and it was awful; sickening really. It was embarrassing to go there as a Liverpool player and get beaten like that. Embarrassing.
‘The very least our fans want to see is a team that fights and gives everything. They won’t accept what they saw that day and nor should they.’
Immediately after the defeat, Liverpool’s squad were whisked up to Manchester Airport. A trip to Dubai organised as a leaving present for Gerrard had been booked months in advance but as they headed up the M6, thoughts turned to making a last-minute cancellation.
‘If it was just a holiday, we wouldn’t have gone,’ admits Henderson. ‘I won’t forget that day in a hurry. That game will stick in my mind for a long time. You have got to keep it as a motivation to make sure it never, ever happens again.
‘It is about me helping to make sure we are in the best condition and mindset to perform every week. I know there will be more fingers pointed at me during the season if things don’t go according to plan but I can deal with that. I’ve dealt with a lot worse.’
Since he arrived at Liverpool four years ago, Henderson has been on a huge journey, both professionally and personally. But he came close to leaving in the summer of 2012 when Brendan Rodgers had just become manager and Fulham were knocking on the door. ‘ I always knew it could change very quickly,’ said Henderson, who signed a five-year deal in April. ‘I’ve given everything to improve as a footballer and a person off the field. That will never change, whether I’m captain or not.’ Such an attitude was one of the reasons he was able to win Rodgers over
and now their relationship is strong. Was there a point, though, when Henderson thought it might be over for the manager after a run of bad results.
‘Not really,’ comes the swift reply. ‘I’ve always known the players have faith in him. I believe the owners fully back him, too. He’s been brilliant for this club and he can take it even further.’
Yet Henderson knows Liverpool have much to prove when they return to Stoke on August 9. ‘ We know we didn’t perform to the levels that we were expected to last season,’ he says. ‘But I think it will help the young players learn what it is like to play for this football club. I hope this can be a big season and I’ll do everything that I can to make it happen.’
His predecessor, you suspect, would have said exactly the same — and that is no bad comparison.