‘Well done’: World Cup semi-finalist tells Liverpool player he should be ‘proud’ of his tournament

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Former Liverpool defender Dejan Lovren tells Jordan Henderson that he should be ‘proud’ of his World Cup. England crashed out this weekend.

Jordan Henderson took to Instagram on Sunday to give his thoughts on England. The Three Lions lost 2-1 to France in their World Cup quarter-final, exiting the tournament despite a positive performance.

“Tough one to take for us all,” he wrote on Instagram and you can read the entire message here. Understandably, he’s gutted to bow out this early – there was a sense that England could have gone all the way.

Former Liverpool defender Dejan Lovren replied to his former skipper with a message of encouragement. He believes Henderson should be ‘proud’ of his efforts, despite the exit.

“Well done Skip,” he wrote. “Be proud of yourself and the team.”

Jordan Henderson at the World Cup

Bizarrely, Henderson didn’t start the World Cup a starting player. Or at least, it was bizarre for those paying attention to Liverpool over the last seven years.

Henderson, after all, is the player with by far the most success in knockout competitions of anyone in that England squad. And he did as a captain and leader of the team. Though, the player with the next-most experience was Trent Alexander-Arnold and he couldn’t even get more than a few minutes.

Regardless, Henderson did eventually force his way in and England immediately improved. Their best performances came as the Liverpool captain sat alongside Declan Rice and Jude Bellingham in midfield, transforming the levels.

That earned Henderson plenty of praise. Bellingham, Harry Kane and Jack Grealish were among those praising him from within the squad. There was more praise from outside, too, as pundits realised that this player who constantly wins football matches is actually really good.

Lovren is absolutely right, then. Henderson should be proud of his efforts and just how well he played at this World Cup. It might finally be what he needed to show everyone just how good he is.