Darren Bent has heaped praise on Liverpool midfielder Jordan Henderson after their 2-1 win over Crystal Palace on Saturday afternoon.
The Sky Sports pundit slammed the critics of the England international, who does so many different jobs throughout the 90 minutes for Jurgen Klopp’s men.
Bent is most impressed with Henderson’s ability to complete the jobs that no one else wants to do and referred to his covering of Trent Alexander-Arnold in defence when he was clearly struggling against the trickery of Wilfried Zaha at Selhurst Park.
“Jordan Henderson gets so much criticism, which I think is disgraceful because he does so many jobs, which you alluded to there,” he told Football Insider.
“He does jobs that people don’t want to do as you said, he fills in, he understands the situation, obviously he sees Trent is struggling a little bit so he makes it his job to go over there and help him out.
“I bet if you ask Trent who does he enjoy playing with, he’ll 100% say ‘I love when Jordan is on the pitch as I know he is going to help me.”
OPINION
Bent is spot on with his verdict of Henderson and his critics. The 29-year-old is often the scapegoat for both club and country, even after another superb performance on Saturday. The Reds’ captain was phenomenal in defence and helped keep Crystal Palace relatively quiet despite their pressure moving forward. It seems strange to say that if there was one area Alexander-Arnold is weak in, it would be one-on-one defending, but Henderson once again came to the rescue against Zaha. The midfielder made won three aerial battles as well as completing six tackles against Palace according to WhoScored – the most in each department in a single game all season. That highlights the key role he played in collecting another three points, with his impact undeniable in the 79 minutes he was on the field. Fabinho often gets the majority of the credit in midfield, while Henderson goes under-the-radar, but he won’t mind as long as he can lift the Premier League trophy on the final day of the season.
