Henderson: We all have a big responsibility today

The Reds play host to the League Two side at Anfield, and the captain has used his programme notes to underline the importance of applying the correct attitude.

He wrote in ‘This is Anfield’: “As a player, it’s often a question you get asked around this time of year: is the FA Cup important or is it a distraction? It’s similar for the early rounds of the EFL Cup as well.

“It can get presented to us as being something we don’t prioritise or really commit to. I can tell you at this football club nothing could be further from the truth. We prioritise every single game and every single competition and as players we wouldn’t have it any other way.

“Each morning at Melwood we walk in past an ‘honours wall’. This details all the trophies Liverpool have won in their history; every single one of them. When you sign for Liverpool, be it as a young kid in the Academy or as an established pro for the first team, you know you’re joining a club that gets judged on winning things.

“Far from being a distraction, it’s a massive incentive. This afternoon we face Plymouth Argyle in the third round of the FA Cup and in a few days we play Southampton in the first leg of the EFL Cup semi-final. In terms of how we prepare and how much focus we give the cup games, it’s no different to when we play Premier League games.

“Later this month we face Manchester United at Old Trafford and Chelsea here at Anfield. Our attitude in building up to those fixtures will be identical to today. It has to be. If you don’t treat the competition and opponent with respect it will come back to bite you.

“In the dressing room we realise that representing Liverpool brings a responsibility and that means our approach and attitude today, whoever is named in the starting XI, has to be spot on.”

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