Jordan Henderson equalled Steven Gerrard’s record of appearing in six different major tournaments for England last night.
The Liverpool captain got on the pitch for the first time in this year’s World Cup during the 0-0 draw with USA. And the 25-minute cameo actually saw the 32-year-old match his predecessor at Anfield.
In fact, Henderson became just the fourth England player in history to feature at half-a-dozen tournaments. The others being Gerrard, Sol Campbell and Wayne Rooney.
Should the Liverpool midfielder manage to hold onto his place for Euro 2024, he’d become the all-time record holder.
Congrats, Hendo!
Henderson’s consistency pays off
Given that Henderson hasn’t had an especially distinguished international career, this is a bit of a surprising statistic.
England have done very well in the last two tournaments prior to this one. But the Liverpool man hasn’t always been a key character in that.
At last summer’s European Championship, Henderson wasn’t in Gareth Southgate’s regular starting XI. The veteran often felt like something of an afterthought, as a young, vibrant team reached the final.
Prior to that, Henderson was more involved in the run to the semi-final at the 2018 World Cup. The Liverpool man started all three knockout ties as England lost out in the last-four.
Going back further, the former Sunderland player also featured in Euro 2012, World Cup 2014 and Euro 2016. As a result, Liverpool’s No.14 has made each of the last six tournament squads.
For a player who gets as much flak as Hendo, that’s pretty good going. And you wouldn’t bet against him making it seven, either.
Judging by his comments last week, he very much believes he still has a chance of doing so.
Henderson may not have the talent of a Rooney or a Gerrard, but his reliability, quality and leadership have put him in a very select group for his nation. Here’s to the next six!
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