Former Premier League striker Noel Whelan has called on Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson to fill the void left by injured enforcer Fabinho.
The Brazilian international has been ruled out until the New Year after suffering an injury in the draw against Napoli on Wednesday, but BBC pundit Whelan feels the England star can help soften the blow.
“It’s very difficult to fill the shoes of that sort of player because he’s been such an integral part to Jurgen Klopp,” he told Football Insider. “He does such a great job protecting the backline, the energy that he brings, breaking up attacks. Without these sort of players, you don’t win titles. Who steps in for a player like that? I’m not sure.
“You could drop Henderson back into that role, we know he can play that role. There’s no doubt it’s a huge blow because he offers so much energy and aggression in there, his composed play, his range of passing, his defensive duties. This will be a huge worry.”
OPINION
There’s no doubt that replacing Fabinho is going to be an immensely difficult task for Jurgen Klopp in the months to come. The former Monaco man has emerged as one of the very first names on the team sheet for the German, and he doesn’t have anyone who can do quite the same job in front of the back four. However, Whelan is right that Henderson is the Reds’ best bet to replace Fabinho in the short term. The statistics show that the 29-year-old can do some of what Fabinho does, if not quite as well as the Brazilian. As per WhoScored.com, Henderson actually beats out Fabinho in average clearances and blocks per game, while he is dribbled past less often and fouls fewer times per outing. However, he’s not quite with the 26-year-old when it comes to average tackles, interceptions and offsides drawn, although he’s not a million miles off in any of those categories. So while the absence of Fabinho will certainly be felt, there’s no doubt that Henderson is capable of stepping up to the plate in his place.
