The 2016-17 Premier League season is well underway and one man is loving every minute of it.
Jordan Henderson was a footballer who came into the campaign with immense pressure from all different sources, but mainly from the Liverpool supporters. As much as one tries to eradicate the background noise coming from the outside, it is almost impossible to do so.
Henderson was written off by many in his early days at Anfield until he eventually turned into the player the Reds thought they were buying when Northern Irishmen, Brendan Rodgers took charge.
The 2013-14 season saw Henderson crucial in Liverpool’s title charge. With the exception of Luis Suarez that season, he was Rodgers’ best player. He was playing that box-to-box midfield role with energy and ability. His passing and pressing was the reason the team won many midfield battles that particular campaign.
Last season though was quite the opposite for Henderson. It was a poor one from the Liverpool captain, but anyone who understands what a footballing injury can do to you will know why it was a troublesome season for the man who was new to the captaincy.
At what is only the beginning of the 2016-17 season, we are seeing Henderson playing in a completely different role under German manager Jurgen Klopp. The No.6 role is an incredibly difficult one to be consistent in, let alone master. One has to be multidimensional to have any success at all. It requires that certain individual on the pitch to control possession, protect the back four, dictate the tempo, switch play, selecting which direction attacks take place and creating goals for your teammates.
This No.6 position allows Henderson to showcase what he can do. He has quality, but many people fail to address that.
So far in this new season for Henderson, he has adapted to this role with ease. Many felt that Klopp would lose a lot of his strengths by playing him here, such as providing the gut busting runs from midfield, but onlookers are seeing a lot more of his qualities flourish. What has made the rise even more impressive is that the role is very unknown to him.
It had been stated during the preseason when Henderson was preparing himself for this new challenge that he wanted to go beyond the basics of what it took to be a solid player in this position. He studied hours of footage to learn and understand what it took to be the best possible No.6 in the country, so not only would it benefit him in club football, but for England as well.
What should please most Liverpool supporters is the fact that he is continuing to get better week in and week out. It is always a worrying sign when you have someone doing a certain task and they are not learning and getting better from their experiences, but that certainly is not proving to be an issue for Henderson.
He will also still add goals from his new position. There will be times he will be able to offer some support upfront and find the back of the net – just as he did against Chelsea when he scored a goal of the season contender already.
One problem Henderson has had in his career is everyone believes he is just a hard working midfielder who runs and presses, but there is more to his game that that. We are now seeing his intelligence, passing range, tackling ability and true leadership come out at the same time when playing as the No.6.
Those who believe he is not the man for the armband and is not worthy of a spot in the starting XI are slowly but surely crawling back into their boxes. It is ridiculous that many still question whether he is good enough to play for Liverpool. What more does he have to do?
Last season was last season. Him struggling had nothing to do with his ability, but simply the injuries.
The man is a credit to himself. While many continue to try and put him down, he continues to keep fighting and proving his doubters wrong. He is a leader in many different ways, but what comes across as his most impressive attribute is his ability to work and fight every day of his footballing life.
His rise will not come as a shock to those working daily with Liverpool’s captain. One will not find many better attitudes in today’s game and that has been key to finding the form that will see him part of the Klopp revolution.
It is refreshing to see someone who is not into the fancy haircuts and the ridiculous celebrations such as the ‘dab’. He is completely focused on himself becoming the best possible footballer he can be and it is alarming that the footballing public do not seem to appreciate those type of personalities anymore.
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