Henderson to repay Liverpool investment?

£20m is a lot of money when you are buying potential, but is Jordan Henderson showing signs that he is starting to repay that hefty price tag?

Henderson came through the ranks at Sunderland, his home town club, making his first team debut at the age of 18 and quickly establishing himself in ‘The Black Cats’ midfield, making over 70 appearances by the time he turned 21.  During this time Henderson was rewarded for his fine performances with his first full England cap, lining up in midfield alongside Steven Gerrard in a 1-0 defeat against France at Wembley.  Bigger clubs were soon circling for a player once described by Steve Bruce, his manager at the time as ‘the best young British footballer there is’ and it was Liverpool that took the plunge on him in June 2011.

Henderson has struggled to come to terms with life at Liverpool since his big money move last summer, often deployed wide on the right of a 4-2-3-1 formation under previous manager Kenny Dalglish.  Following the appointment of Brendan Rodgers this summer, the 22 year old has had to make do with a regular spot on the bench during the former Swansea boss’ early days.  However, Rodgers has recently given Henderson a chance centrally as part of his three man midfield, a position much more suiting to the players composed, technical abilities.

Since his re-emergence in the Liverpool midfield, Henderson has received rave reviews from sections of the Anfield faithful, culminating with his spectacular volley to set the ball rolling in their 5-0 demolition of Norwich City on Saturday.  With both Europa League and FA Cup commitments in addition to the rigours of the Premier League to come for Liverpool, it is assumed that Rodgers is likely to rotate his central midfield considering the options he has. 

Henderson is joined by fellow British youngsters Joe Allen and Jonjo Shelvey, as well as established names Lucas Leiva and talismanic captain Gerrard.  However, in recent weeks Henderson may just have played his way into Rodgers starting eleven thoughts and possibly those of Roy Hodgson as well.

By Aaron SharpFollow @ajs26061988