Friday, June 24, 2011

Terry McDermott Tips Jordan Henderson To Rack Up Goals

Former Liverpool and Newcastle player Terry McDermott thinks that Jordan Henderson can become a star performer and a regular goalscorer if he applies himself at Anfield.

Henderson moved to Merseyside from Sunderland for a fee in the region of £20 (€22.5) million and the former great believes the midfielder has the ability to live up to his price tag.

The England international has only scored five senior goals in his career but McDermott thinks with time and practice he can improve that aspect of his game.

He told LFC Weekly: "I never scored many for Newcastle and if you look at my record you'll see I didn't get many in the first few seasons at Liverpool.

"I think it's definitely something you can learn to do. You adapt as you get older and you become a wiser footballer. You learn about what you can and can't do. I was a daft sod off the pitch but on it I wanted to win and cared about becoming a better player. I studied those around me and watched what they did. That helped me a lot.

"I began to realize what I needed to do to score more often. I was good at getting forward and knew that I could score more goals. The coaches at the club encouraged me to do it and that helped too. All of a sudden I was getting 15 to 20 goals a season.

"I think if Jordan works on that side of his game, there's no reason why he can't get double figures too. He's definitely capable of it. I think he has shown that with the goals he has scored for Sunderland."

The former Newcastle man thinks Kenny Dalglish is the right man to get all he can out of Henderson and fellow big-money signing Andy Carroll.

He added: "Kenny is the master. I'm sure he'll work with Jordan on what he needs to do. Any player who signs for the club now will learn plenty from Kenny. Andy Carroll's the same. I'm sure Kenny will help him become an even better centre-forward.

"As well as Kenny, Jordan will also have Steven Gerrard to look up to. I think he's spoken about how he admires him already. If he listens to him and puts in the effort that's required, there's no reason why he can't be a great player for the club. I think he's a very astute signing.

"Any time I have seen him play it has been on the box. I recently watched him for England under-21s at the European Championships. It's clear to me that he's a good player. He's very energetic and can function in more than one position.

"That versatility is a great asset. It gives the manager options if he has players who can slot in to different positions. It's great for Jordan too became it gives him more chance of playing.

"When everyone is fit, Kenny will have a lot of options in midfield and that's got to be a good thing."

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