Lallana: Hendo's levels are the benchmark for us
The high benchmark Jordan Henderson sets in his application and attitude can help Liverpool achieve the success they crave, according to Adam Lallana.
Saturday’s home victory against Barclays Premier League surprise package Leicester City included a stand-out performance from the captain, whose energy was a key factor in pushing the Reds to a deserved 1-0 result.
That Henderson produced such a display less than a month after his return from a lengthy spell on the sidelines merely typified his importance to the side in Lallana’s opinion.
The pair are good friends, having been teammates for club and country since the latter arrived at Anfield in the summer of 2014, and combined to lethal effect as the skipper scored against West Bromwich Albion earlier in December.
But their friendship does not bias Lallana’s assessment of his colleague – instead the Englishman judges his compatriot on what he witnesses on the turf every single day.
He told Liverpoolfc.com: “I see different traits of his, being able to work with him so closely. I see how dedicated he is and how much hard work he has put into his career to get where he is today.
“It’s Liverpool’s privilege that he’s our captain. He is not one that wants the praise or to be credited, he just wants to get on with his job like a lot of us here and do well for the team.
“He is a big team player and he’ll always sacrifice himself for others. If we can gain that mentality throughout the season and throughout the squad, I think that’s how we’re going to achieve big things.”
Henderson’s injury lay-off meant the No.14 was unavailable for the opening weeks of Jürgen Klopp’s tenure, much to his own frustration.
He has therefore been making up for lost time since beginning his comeback by appearing as a substitute against Swansea City at Anfield on November 29, determined to play his own part in the manager’s new plans.
Klopp highlighted the England international for praise in the aftermath of the win over Leicester and Lallana expects even more to come too.
He said: “It is always difficult, it happened to me at Southampton, being out injured when the new manager comes in. You almost feel a little bit in limbo.
“You obviously want to get to know him but you really want to get to know him on the training pitch and working under him. That has obviously been difficult for Jordan.
“He is a very close mate of mine and we speak a lot about it; I knew how eager he was to get back. Especially playing the way the manager wants to play – it is right up Jordan’s street.
“You saw [against West Brom] with his late run into the box, his timing and getting the goal how important he is to the football club.”