Jordan Brian Henderson.From Liverpool scapegoat to Premier League, Champions League and Club World Cup-winning captain.And now, he’s been crowned Football Writers' Association Footballer of the Year for his performances during the 2019/20 season.It’s been quite a journey for Henderson since he arrived at Anfield for £16 million in 2011.You probably think you know everything there is to know about Liverpool’s heroic skipper.However, we’ve decided to look at 12 things you may not know about himLet’s take a look:
Competed in Soccer AM’s Skill Skool
Remember Soccer AM’s Skill Skool? Henderson may not seem the type of player to produce some 'skillz' but, back in 2008, he took on Nathan Luscombe in a head-to-head battle whilst at Sunderland’s academy.
He didn’t win the battle but Luscombe’s football career ended in 2014 when he was released by Celtic Nation FC, who played in the ninth tier of English football.
Meanwhile, Henderson is the captain of the English, European and world champions.
Who’s the real winner?
Andy Robertson came up with Henderson’s trophy shuffle
Maybe we should start calling the #HendoShuffle the #RobboShuffle.
"It was a little bit of banter in the changing rooms prior," Henderson explained.
"Robbo was messing about, he’d always do the shuffle pretending to lift the trophy and stuff like that. So, when the time came I felt as though I just wanted to sort of do it together and use that sort of banter that we’d had previously in terms of the little shuffle and stuff. ‘I just wanted to be able to see the lads’ faces just before I lifted it as well. That was really special for me, to be able to see the lads rather than just have my back to them.
"So, yeah, it was a little bit off the cuff, to be honest. After we did that [for] the Champions League the lads made sure I kept on doing it for the Super Cup and Club World Cup."
And now the Premier League…
His incredible Bebo profile
“ive goat gawjuz girl cald sarah shez amazing n i love her been together just over a year n its great.”
Words of future Premier League, Champions League and Club World Cup-winning captain, there...
Refusal to leave Liverpool for Fulham in 2012
Brendan Rodgers attempted to swap Henderson for Fulham’s Clint Dempsey in 2012. And the deal would have happened if it wasn’t for Hendo’s stubbornness to fight for his place.
After being told that he wasn’t part of Rodgers’ plan, Henderson admitted he cried.
“I went back to my room. I shed a few tears. I ended up crying a little bit because it hurt so much. I had the game that night to think about it as well.
“I spoke to my agent and told him what had happened and I said I didn’t want to go. I wanted to stay and fight and try and improve and try to prove the manager wrong.”
Fair to say he’s proved everyone wrong.
His amazing relationship with his Father
Brian Henderson, Jordan’s Father, was a policeman and an amateur footballer. He suffered from oral cancer in recent years but was well enough to be in the stands for the 2019 Champions League.
After beating Spurs 2-0, Henderson shared an emotional embrace with his Dad.
His Dad also predicted he ‘will be biting a Premier League winning medal this time next year.’ He was right.
Alex Ferguson’s comments in his autobiography
"We looked at Jordan Henderson a lot and Steve Bruce was unfailingly enthusiastic about him. Against that we noticed that Henderson runs from his knees, with a straight back, while the modern footballer runs from his hips. We thought his gait might cause him problems later in his career,” Fergie wrote in his book.
Henderson has suffered a few injury problems (which we’ll come onto next) but Ferguson must be wishing he took the chance of him.
His heel simply won’t heal
Did you know that Henderson has a chronic heel ache - a condition known as Plantar Fasciitis?
In 2015, Henderson admitted that it couldn’t be fixed.
“With my heel there isn't a timescale, there isn't really a cure,” he said.
To think that five years later he’s still battling on through the pain is quite remarkable really.
He wanted to ‘kill’ Luis Suarez
Henderson didn’t only have to deal with fans thinking he wasn’t good enough for Liverpool, he had to deal with Luis Suarez thinking he wasn’t good enough for Liverpool.
“At the time I was trying to do the best I could do and it comes as a footballer, the criticism and people doubting you,” Henderson told Jamie Carragher on The Greatest Game podcast.
“At the time I was a young player and there was one or two things Luis did in training that I didn’t like and it made me feel like I wasn’t good enough to be in the same team.
“The arms would go up – it was like, ‘what’s he doing’ as if I shouldn’t be there. It really hurt and frustrated me. He did it one, two, three times and then I exploded and I was ready to kill him!
He was a striker at Sunderland’s academy
Henderson started his footballing career as a striker before moving to a right-winger during his youth days. At Liverpool, he started as a right midfielder but has since moved into his preferred central midfield role.
In 2011, he was one of 13 players to watch on FIFA’s website
Luc Castaignos, David de Gea, Alan Dzagoev, Youssef El-Arabi, Shinji Kagawa, Mats Hummels, Koo Ja-Cheol, Erik Lamela, Lucas, Romelu Lukaku, Andrea Ranocchia, Xherdan Shaqiri and Henderson were all picked out by FIFA.
Here’s what FIFA had to say about him:
“Composed, athletic and powerful, Henderson has been hailed as ‘the best young British footballer there is’ by his Sunderland manager, Steve Bruce. Fabio Capello also recognised the midfielder’s talent by handing him a first senior England cap in November, while Sir Alex Ferguson has expressed a public interest in prising Henderson from his hometown team.”
His rabona assist for Adam Lallana
Adam Lallana got emotional talking about Henderson earlier this week. It’s probably because he was thinking about his rabona assist for him back in 2015 during a pre-season friendly against Thailand All-Stars.
Fought through the pain vs Barcelona
If there was one game that summed up Henderson’s journey during his Liverpool career, it’s THAT 4-0 victory against Barcelona.
Henderson struggled through knee pain during the first half, so much so that he begged the medical team to give him painkillers at half time.
“I was struggling a little bit when I got a whack on the knee. It was dead,” he revealed.
“The doctor said to just keep it moving. I managed to get to half-time and I had a bit of treatment - there was a jab and tablets. I said: ‘Just give us everything!’
"I managed to get through it and the crowd helped as well and kept us going. It was an amazing night and I'm honoured to be part of it and contribute.”
Footage of him collapsing to the floor in pain at the final whistle says it all.