Jordan Henderson: "It's the Best I've Felt In a Long Time"

When Liverpool almost won the Premier League title in 2014, midfielder Jordan Henderson was a lynchpin in the side, starting 35 games. His straight red card and subsequent suspension at the end of a late season match against Manchester City proved to be a negative turning point, though, as the Reds wilted down the stretch without him.

Since then, Henderson has struggled with foot and knee injuries and has not been the same player he was during that title push. Now, though, the midfielder said he's close to full strength. He played 75 minutes in Liverpool's recent 2-0 win over AC Milan.

"It's the best I have felt in a long time coming into a pre-season," he said. "I've been working hard and I felt good out there, as did a lot of the other lads as well, so it was a complete performance.

"We still want to improve on certain things, maybe score a few goals with the chances we created but overall we are happy with the performance."

Henderson being healthy and on-form this season would be a huge boost for Liverpool -- after all, most of the reinforcements brought in through the transfer window have been either attack-minded or defensive players, with the central midfield still a bit of a question mark for the team. If the former Sunderland star, in tandem with Emre Can, regains his edge, the midfield would become a strong point.