Hendo back with a bang

Jordan Henderson describes injury as ‘the hardest thing to deal with as an athlete’ after missing the last few months of the season before returning to the England fold just in time for UEFA EURO 2020. 

The Liverpool skipper underwent groin surgery back in February which ruled him out for the remainder of the season but through hard work and determination, he’s got himself back playing. 

Henderson made his first appearance since then as a second-half substitute in England’s final warm-up game before the tournament, a 1-0 victory over Romania.

The midfielder, who turns 31 on Thursday, was also named on the bench for England’s opener against Croatia and feels as though he’s finally over his injury troubles.

"Injury is the hardest thing to deal with as an athlete so when you can’t do what you love it’s very hard to get your mindset positive,” Henderson said during Tuesday’s Lions’ Den connected by EE show.

“You just have to take each day as it comes. There are ups and downs and different things happen along the way but ultimately in the end, when you see the light at the end of the tunnel that’s when you become yourself again.

“You sort of become stronger for going through that as well and that’s how I’ve felt for a lot of my injuries.

“The easiest thing for me is to get my head down in the gym, get as strong as I can everywhere else, let the injury heal and then go from there. 

Henderson’s next cap would take him up to the 60-mark and the prospect of doing so against Scotland is a tantalising one, having met them at Wembley once before in a 3-0 FIFA 2018 World Cup qualifying victory. 

“It’s a huge honour to play for your country but to do it for such a long time is amazing,” said Henderson, who made his debut against France more than a decade ago. 

“I try to treat every cap like it’s my first and I enjoy being around the place - I’ve done everything I can to try and get back so I can help the lads in this tournament and hopefully I can contribute. 

"I’ve played against them [Scotland] before and I’m looking forward to it, as everyone will be. We need another good performance because it’ll be a good challenge for us.”