The former Liverpool captain returned to the England squad this month and made substitute appearances against Albania and Latvia
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Jordan Henderson
Jordan Henderson was in action for England(Image: The FA via Getty Images)
Declan Rice has fired a message to England teammate and former Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson this week. Henderson returned to the international stage for this month's World Cup qualifiers.
The former Liverpool star hadn't featured for the Three Lions since November 2023 and was consequently left out of Euro 2024 squad by former manager Gareth Southgate. Henderson played in both games as a substitute as England claimed victories over Albania and Latvia at Wembley.
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Rice, on the other hand, started in midfield in both matches and grabbed an assist in each. It was a positive international break as they claimed six points from six.
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Taking to Instagram on Tuesday, Rice shared Henderson's post and wrote: "What a guy," followed by a love heart emoji.
Declan Rice
Declan Rice
Henderson, who shared a number of pictures on Instagram, added: "Loved every second of this week. Great to be back with the boys! Good start in our new chapter," followed by a lion and love heart emoji.
Speaking about Henderson's return to the England squad, former Arsenal striker Ian Wright said on the Wrighty’s House podcast: "The fact that he’s brought him in and it was the wild-card inclusion. Everyone was like, 'Jordan Henderson?!'
"But then when you listen to his interviews, listen to him talking about the players and players around the squad, what he wants from the squad, who is great around the squad.
"He himself said that everybody, literally to a man, was mentioning Jordan Henderson. It would not surprise me, if Jordan Henderson’s fit enough and playing in the games, if Henderson is there for what he brings to that team, to that group of players.
"Thomas Tuchel said at the start that he wasn’t thinking of Jordan Henderson but the conversations he was having, Jordan Henderson’s name came up nearly every single time."
With the World Cup 2026 around the corner, Wright believes England could benefit from having an experienced leader like him in the dressing room. "I can see that he could be somebody that could be there. He’s got worth. That’s what I feel with Tuchel, he sees his worth," the pundit added.
"You look at Jude [Bellingham], he looks like he’s a big personality in there. Obviously Declan [Rice] is and then you’re starting to look around, there’s no Jordan Henderson profile in there who will pull everybody up.
"He’s still got the capability in that dressing room to pull Jude Bellingham up, that’s how Jude sees him.
"Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying that Jude needs pulling up. But there’s no one in that dressing room… when Jude came through, it was Jordan who was helping him through so he’s got that respect for him, that big-brother respect."