Liverpool vs Brighton: Massive split over midfielder’s performance
Liverpool travel away to Brighton and came away from the coast with a 1-0 win, but Jordan Henderson’s performance has caused a massive split of opinion.
Henderson started alongside Gini Wijnaldum and played the entire 90 minutes as a Mohamed Salah penalty ensured the Reds went home with all three points.
But as ever, the England international continues to divide opinion among fans – some love him, others can wait for him to leave the club.
It seemed like Henderson had turned a page in regards to his reputation, especially following a strong World Cup. But football moves quickly and now the former Sunderland man seems to be a scapegoat.
Despite being top of the table and seven points clear of Manchester City (who play on Monday), Liverpool fans are still happy to pick flaws in their team. Henderson is thought of as a sideways passing merchant with little creativity or spark.
And the divide in opinion seems to be firmly rooted between journalists and fans. A number were of the opinion that Henderson had an excellent game against Brighton, while the punters were keen to see him removed from the side.
The midfielder was given a rating of 7.1 by WhoScored as he completed 88% of his passes, completed three tackles and has 128 touches throughout the 90 minutes.
Big, big three points for Liverpool - Robertson, Henderson and Fabinho the standouts. Brighton's commitment and determination made them dangerous to the last kick, played really well. Referee, unsurprisingly, booed off for a whistle happy display. No arguments, though, on penalty
— Dominic King (@DominicKing_DM) January 12, 2019
After a slow start to the season, Jurgen Klopp has turned to Hendo more and more. He didn’t feature in the FA Cup, but played the full term against City, Newcastle United and the league game against Wolves.
Liverpool will look to carry on their winning ways against Crystal Palace on Saturday. The Eagles are recovering from a 2-1 loss to Watford that leaves them in 14th place with 22 points, but their win against Manchester City proves that big teams can’t afford to take points for granted.
Next. Henderson a disaster? Read our player ratings against Brighton here!. dark
Whether Henderson plays or not, one thing is for sure: he’ll continue to divide opinion.