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What Jurgen Klopp and James Milner said no to after Liverpool Champions League final win
LIVERPOOL boss Jurgen Klopp and James Milner both refused Jordan Henderson’s request after they beat Tottenham in the Champions League final last season.
The 2-0 win over Tottenham in Madrid in June secured Liverpool their sixth European Cup and Henderson wanted both Jurgen Klopp and Milner to join him in lifting the trophy.
The 29-year-old has fought hard to prove his doubters wrong after making the switch from Sunderland to Anfield in 2011 for £20m
The midfielder won the League Cup with the Reds in his debut season but then had to wait seven years before lifting another trophy.
During that time he lost four finals, including the 2017/18 Champions League final loss to Real Madrid.
I asked Millie and the gaffer because I felt as though Millie is a big part of the squad
And Henderson feels both Klopp and Miler were essential in helping create a squad that was able to clear that final hurdle.
“I asked Millie and the gaffer because I felt as though Millie is a big part of the squad,” Henderson said about lifting the Champions League trophy.
“I know I wear the armband when I play but he wore it a lot that time as well, when I haven't been playing.
“He is a big part of the dressing room. He is the most experienced player and won a lot of trophies. I feel as though without him it would have been different.
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“I felt as though he deserved to, along with other people, but also the manager.
“What we did that night wouldn't have been possible without the manager, and I felt as though he deserved to do that. But he said no.”
That night in Madrid saw Henderson became a member of an elite club of Reds’ captains who have lifted the trophy as he joined Emlyn Hughes, Phil Thompson, Graeme Souness and Steven Gerrard.
However, the boy from Tyne and Wear insists it wasn’t about him and looking back on the night takes more enjoyment from looking at the reaction of his team-mates.
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“It was not about me standing at the front lifting the trophy, it was more about the team,” he added.
“When I look back and see the faces of the lads, that’s what means more to me….There are a lot of leaders in this group and there is the manager.
“I don’t see why I should be given more praise.
“For me, the photo would have meant the same if the manager was lifting the trophy and I was stood behind him.”