Jordan Henderson Wants Consistency

There are worse ways to go into a mini-break than by coasting to a 5-0 away win in the first leg of the Champions League Round of 16. Liverpool made their much-anticipated return to the knockout stages in amazing style against FC Porto last Wednesday.

Sadio Mané, who has been having something of an off year, at least when compared to his attacking teammates Mohamed Salah and Roberto Firmino, reminded everyone just how good he really is by bagging himself a hat trick at the Estádio do Dragão.

It was the magic of the Champions League, or, just as likely, the magic of those orange third kits that have seen Liverpool through two victories in a row now.

As the team takes a break in Spain, captain Jordan Henderson talked about how he hopes they can put in similar performances for the rest of the season.

“I felt everybody did their job really well and that’s why you win how we did. We need to do that more consistently, every week, no matter who we’re playing,” he said. “That’s easier said than done at times, but that’s why we’ve got to try to do and we look forward to the next few games.”

One player the skipper picked out specifically for praise was his vice-captain, James Milner, who now has 14 assists in the Champions League.

“He has told a few of us that over the last couple of hours, to be fair,” Henderson joked. “He is a fantastic player. It doesn’t really matter how old he is, he is as fit as anyone and you can see that on the pitch in how much he contributes to the team.

“He was brilliant again at Porto. He’s got a lot of assists in the Champions League, so hopefully he can continue it.”

“He was brilliant again at Porto. He’s got a lot of assists in the Champions League, so hopefully he can continue it.”

The next game isn’t until next Saturday when Liverpool welcome West Ham to Anfield. The Reds beat West Ham 4-1 back in November, and with Salah, Firmino, and now Mané all on fire, that should be enough to get them over the line to another victory.