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How Jordan Henderson has had the last laugh over Sir Alex Ferguson

  /  autty

When Sir Alex Ferguson's explosive autobiography was released in 2013 there were lines aplenty for fans and pundits to pore over, as the Scot revealed so much about his fabled tenure at Old Trafford.

But as a Manchester United side unrecognisable from his heyday prepare for their huge clash with league leaders Liverpool today, Ferguson's view on Reds captain Jordan Henderson, with the benefit of hindsight, is particularly intriguing.

The midfield general was at a time one of the most coveted young talents in English football, as he broke through the ranks at boyhood club Sunderland. Unsurprisingly, United had run the rule over Henderson, before opting against signing the youngster. The reason? The Englishman's 'gait'.

'We looked at Jordan Henderson a lot, and Steve Bruce was unfailingly enthusiastic about him,' Ferguson wrote in his autobiography. 'But we noticed that Henderson runs from his knees, with a straight back.

'The modern footballer runs from his hips, and we thought this gait might cause him problems later in his career.'

It's a curious rationale that would come to haunt Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's United, who are severely lacking a midfield general of the Henderson mould to steer Ferguson's former club up the Premier League table.

Amid his overwhelming on-field success over the course of the past 12 months with Liverpool, Henderson is finally gaining the recognition he has long deserved. Flamengo boss Jorge Jesus' ranking of Henderson as the world's best midfielder might be stretching it a little, but it acknowledged that the 29-year-old ranks among the elite.

There is no doubting that Henderson is a man United could do with right now. With £52million man Fred flattering to deceive, Paul Pogba seemingly unable to keep his eyes off the exit door, and Nemanja Matic not at the level that earned him so many plaudits at Chelsea, Henderson's presence in United's midfield would be very much welcomed.

In terms of his on-field contributions, a strong argument could be made to suggest that no midfielder in the Premier League does what the Liverpool man is deployed to do.

For all of Ferguson's concerns regarding Henderson's running style, he sure gets around the pitch to good effect. In fact, as an incredibly fit, hard-working, and versatile midfielder, he is tailor-made for Klopp's system.

Statistics alone don't read all too favourably for the Liverpool captain, with the likes of Kevin De Bruyne and Joao Moutinho outperforming Henderson in the final third. Defensively, Henderson's statistics are some way behind those of Leicester's Wilfred Ndidi, who leads the way by a considerable margin.

Compared to United's midfield options, though, Henderson is streets ahead. His pass completion rate of 84.61% far exceeds that of McTominay and Matic, while he's only been dispossessed four times this season, compared to Fred's 17. He's also given away fewer fouls per game than United's midfield trio.

Henderson has a bit of everything, the sort of player that every club looking to reach the top level needs. His intense pressing game sets the tempo for the rest of the team, he's not afraid to shirk a challenge, and despite yielding criticism for pragmatic passing in the early stages of his career, Henderson has become keen to direct the ball forwards into attacking positions.

He also possesses the versatility that is so hard to come by in the modern age. Manchester City's flawed experiments in playing the likes of Rodri and Fernandinho at centre back suggest it is no mean feet for central midfielders to slot into a back pairing.

With a shortage of defensive options causing the German a sizeable headache, Klopp called upon Henderson to fill the mammoth void left by Virgil van Dijk in the Club World Cup semi-final against Monterrey. Alongside young Joe Gomez, the skipper marshalled the defense superbly, as Liverpool went on to be crowned world champions for the first time in their history.

He's also been known to fill in at right-back on occasion, most notably controlling the dangerous Demarai Gray during Liverpool's 1-1 draw with Leicester at Anfield back in January 2019.

And that's before delving into Henderson's contributions off the pitch. He had for some time looked to have his legacy marred by the 'next Steven Gerrard' tag that weighed on his shoulders as heavy as Liverpool's 30-year title-less run.

But under Klopp's guidance, Henderson has stepped out of the shadow cast by the former Liverpool great into a recognised leader of his own.

His verve and drive on the pitch acts as the benchmark for his team-mates to follow, and away from the pitch he is the cool head that keeps the squad focused on firing on all fronts, whether that be domestically or on the continent.

The majority of successful teams have a player that is the very embodiment of the man on the touchline. For the majority of Ferguson's spell at United, he relied on Roy Keane to be the leader that carried his message and energy onto the pitch.

Henderson has taken that role on for Klopp in this all-conquering Liverpool side. It's something that Solskjaer can only dream of having.

History tells us that Ferguson's remark was rather absurd, but at the time it left former Liverpool boss Brendan Rodgers worrying what effect it would have on his young player, who, at just 23 years old, was looking to make his mark at the top level.

'I think if Sir Alex ever bumps into Jordan he might want to apologise for that,' he said in 2013. 'Maybe it was meant as flippant but to a young player making his way in the game it could be damaging.'

Rodgers was slightly off the mark. Ferguson's 'gait' comment was far from damaging for a player with the determination and the will to succeed that the Liverpool captain possesses.

But Fergie does owe Jordan Henderson that apology.