Jordan Henderson (Liverpool -> Al-Ettifaq (5 months) -> Ajax)

Hendo failed to impress for me, too much backwards and sideways crap. He and Gini look like the same player. Not sure either right now should keep Grujic on the bench.

Yeah, his distribution is poor/average from deep, it's why I still see Lucas as our main #6 tbh. We were crying out for him when we were 1-3 or even 2-4 up, someone to slow the tempo, even in first half for his defensive experience.

And I agree, Hendo and Wijnaldum are similar and should fighting for that #8/attacking midfield role. I have come to accept that Wijnaldum is not a player that demands the ball despite being a very good footballer, but rather a player that is more suited to playing without it, similar to Hendo.

Hendo failed to impress for me, too much backwards and sideways crap. He and Gini look like the same player. Not sure either right now should keep Grujic on the bench.

Don't agree at all. If you watch the game again, especially the second half, keep an eye on him and only him. Was absolutely everywhere and worked his F***ing arse off doing a lot of dirty work that will have gone unnoticed because it wasn't eye catching.

Hendo failed to impress for me, too much backwards and sideways crap. He and Gini look like the same player. Not sure either right now should keep Grujic on the bench.

Yup.  Henderson was his usual self.  Wijnaldum looks like he doesn't know what he's supposed to do out there.

Whereas Grujic impressed all pre-season, commanding and dictating play, and added some goals on top of it.  Would love to see him partner Can next weekend.

Don't agree at all. If you watch the game again, especially the second half, keep an eye on him and only him. Was absolutely everywhere and worked his F***ing arse off doing a lot of dirty work that will have gone unnoticed because it wasn't eye catching.

Exactly, he kept us ticking. We knew he was not the best defensive midfielder nor is he a spectacular player but he did job quite well.

Don't agree at all. If you watch the game again, especially the second half, keep an eye on him and only him. Was absolutely everywhere and worked his f**king arse off doing a lot of dirty work that will have gone unnoticed because it wasn't eye catching.

If you watch the game again especially the first half he was passing backwards and sideways all the time, running around but never making tackles. Compare that to Lucas who always shields and turns with the ball and makes an offensive pass on the whole and who doesn't have to run around like a lunatic as he has better positional awareness. I agree he was better in the 2ndf half but it was impossible to be worse.

If you watch the game again especially the first half he was passing backwards and sideways all the time, running around but never making tackles. Compare that to Lucas who always shields and turns with the ball and makes an offensive pass on the whole and who doesn't have to run around like a lunatic as he has better positional awareness. I agree he was better in the 2ndf half but it was impossible to be worse.

Was anybody good in the first half?

Was anybody good in the first half?

Mane was an all-star. Coutinho worked his butt off if he wasn't quite effective till that free kick.

Midfield was our biggest problem. That's where we continued to give up possession time after time. 

Poor first half, very good second half. Don't think he's a holding player at all. Think he's much better being able to get forward.

See the usual criticism of Hendo (even though we won away at Emirates) but in same breath not much criticism of Klopp for playing him, or not replacing him in the summer, which is a bit hard to understand tbh.

I thought he did a lot of the water carrying yesterday, nothing fancy, wont make the headlines, but you need someone in there doing it so the Cous and Manes can do their thing. Wijnaldum didn't give him all that much help either for most of the game, and in 2nd half when Giji played a bit better, thought we looked more comfortable in the middle.

See the usual criticism of Hendo (even though we won away at Emirates) but in same breath not much criticism of Klopp for playing him, or not replacing him in the summer, which is a bit hard to understand tbh.

I thought he did a lot of the water carrying yesterday, nothing fancy, wont make the headlines, but you need someone in there doing it so the Cous and Manes can do their thing. Wijnaldum didn't give him all that much help either for most of the game, and in 2nd half when Giji played a bit better, thought we looked more comfortable in the middle.

I'm sure Klopp didn't tell any of them to go out and play like tw*ts for the first half just so I can practice my hair dryer treatment at half time. It was not just Hendo that was sh*t the first half and much improved in the 2nd but as Captain he should be leading by example.

Was anybody good in the first half?

Mane was good. Letting Coutinho off anything he done wrong with the beauty of a free kick

Hendo was our best player yesterday after Cou and Mane.

Had to cover our midfield on his own at times and still managed to create two goal scoring chances from a DM position.

I'm sure Klopp didn't tell any of them to go out and play like tw*ts for the first half just so I can practice my hair dryer treatment at half time. It was not just Hendo that was sh*t the first half and much improved in the 2nd but as Captain he should be leading by example.

Oh behave. He was completely outnumbered in that first half by the relentless Arsenal high pressure whilst playing in a position unnatural to him.

Look, if he was heartless and the one player who let the system and side down on Sunday I'd call it but he wasn't. Convenient scapegoat.

People complaining about his 'backwards and sideways passing' realize he was paying Defensive Midfield right?

People complaining about his 'backwards and sideways passing' realize he was paying Defensive Midfield right?

There's a time for that and there's a time to be decisive and forward thinking. He's wasted at DM, should be played farther forward or not at all.

There's a time for that and there's a time to be decisive and forward thinking. He's wasted at DM, should be played farther forward or not at all.

i agree we need a better DM

Aside from being the only one of the 3 central midfielders that turned up in the first half, he created 2 very good chances as well, from deep. Playing a thankless role, he did a lot of donkey work and still created. The only thing I don't think he did well in that position was cover the full backs. A solid 7 out of 10 performance and I'm struggling, after watching the game a third time now, to understand the stick he is getting.

I'm struggling, after watching the game a third time now, to understand the stick he is getting.

Its simply because he's Jordan Henderson Rodders.

Defended Hendo enough in the past but nope. Sorry. Can't defend that performance even if you paid me. As I said in the match thread, he had the leadership of a World War One general...and "performed" about as far back from the action as we needed him. Spineless performance.

Defended Hendo enough in the past but nope. Sorry. Can't defend that performance even if you paid me. As I said in the match thread, he had the leadership of a World War One general...and "performed" about as far back from the action as we needed him. Spineless performance.

Yeah i defend him too but its now or nowt for him soon. Had the excuse of injury and playing with pain, but if this is him from now on, then that's not good enough I'm afraid.

I generally defend him, don't understand why he is targeted for so much hate.

But you can't defend a performance as awful as that. Captain of a team which has apparently not learned a F***ing thing and allowed the game to ebb away in a predictable manner.

Awful performance.

take the Captaincy away from him right now its been a complete burden to his development. He was never Liverpool football Club capatain material.

Like FMS, I've bene quick to defend Henderson and I've never been one to look to criticise him. But......

.....this was arguably the worst performance I've ever seen from Henderson. An absolute disgraceful display with no technical ability or creativity or risk or responsibility.

In games when we are crying out for creativity through the middle and being frustrated by lower table opposition, he constantly fails, fails and fails again, providing us with insipid displays that refuse to take games by the scruff of the neck. Slow turning, lack of pivot, no forward passing and cowardly sideways and backwards passes that is not about retaining possession but rather about offloading responsibility onto another player because he is utterly clueless as to what to do with the ball. At best, it's cowardly and at worst, destructive to the whole team performance as his play is so pointless and ineffective that you may as well take one man from the entire 11 out of the equation.

How much more of this are we going to put up with? If Jordan Henderson is the answer, then we've got serious f**king problems.