Virgil Van Dijk injury will 'galvanise' Liverpool says Andy Dunn
Jurgen Klopp was forced to tweak his line-up for the trip to Ajax after his medical staff gave advice on the fitness of Jordan Henderson. The Liverpool skipper was in line to start the match before a change of plan on Tuesday before Liverpool boarded their flight to the Netherlands.
The Reds were at Melwood for a light session before heading to Liverpool John Lennon Airport to kickstart their European adventure.
Klopp was planning to field the tried and trusted midfield trio of Gini Wijnaldum, James Milner and Henderson following the 2-2 draw at Everton in last weekend's Merseyside derby at Goodison Park.
The trio helped Liverpool reach the 2018 Champions League final and have often been Klopp's go-to in Europe or for a big occasion.
Thiago Alcantara and Naby Keita were ruled out through injury while Fabinho had to drop in at centre-back with both Virgil van Dijk and Joel Matip sidelined.
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It was a premeditated substitution and nothing against the performance of Jones, who impressed his midfield colleague Milner.
The 34-year-old veteran also confirmed that Jones was not supposed to start the match, claiming that he only found out he would be in from the start on Tuesday.
Former Arsenal and Manchester United striker Robin van Persie was back in his homeland for the clash and he was impressed by the leadership and maturity of Henderson after entering the fray.
"When Henderson came on, you could see his leadership," Van Persie told BT Sport.
"He was yelling to his teammates to go into every single duel, he was really well on the ball.
Liverpool medics told Jurgen Klopp that Jordan Henderson couldn't play 90 minutes against Ajax (Image: GETTY)
"There was confidence on the ball, like a proper mature player there. He made a big difference in the second half."
Klopp also decided to withdraw Sadio Mane, Mohamed Salah and Roberto Firmino on the hour mark, with the game still hanging in the balance.
The decision paid off though and the trio will now be raring to go on Saturday when the Reds host Sheffield United in Premier League action.
Xherdan Shaqiri, Diogo Jota and Takumi Minamino all gave a good account of themselves in the final half an hour as they continued to put pressure on the front three.