Jordan Henderson has revealed how Brendan Rodgers told him he was to be appointed vice-captain of Liverpool, whilst insisting the role won’t change him.
The 24-year-old midfielder was handed the role following Daniel Agger’s departure from the club in the summer, in what was a dramatic turnaround following a slow start to life at Anfield.
Henderson said: “We had a meeting in the manager’s office at Melwood before the Aston Villa game.
“I wanted to focus on Villa and only told my family and close friends afterwards before it came out in the press.
“They were over the moon. But it won’t change how I am. Just because I’m vice-captain now doesn’t mean I’m going to be captain in the future. I’m not taking anything for granted.
“The manager explained to me that he’d given the vice-captaincy a lot of consideration, but he didn’t put any pressure on me.
“He wants me to crack on and carry on playing the way I have been for Liverpool and hopefully grow and improve again over time.”
Henderson has experience of captaincy with the England Under-21s and and relishes the role.
He added: “It gives me a lot of pride.
“I’ve tried to lead by example. That’s what I’ll try to do here.
“It’s a great honour to be given an important role at a club the size of this, with all its history.
“It’s also encouraging that the manager has given me the extra responsibility. All I can do is keep doing what I’ve been doing and look to support Stevie in any way I can as well as the team, of course. For me, nothing changes.
“My attitude towards training and games will remain the same. I just want to try my best and help the team to win football matches. That’s the most important thing.”
