Should Jordan Henderson be brought into England’s starting eleven?

You could see the joy and relief etched on Jordan Henderson’s face when his header found the net against Ukraine. In his 61st cap for the national team, Henderson had finally scored a goal. It has been a long time coming, with the Liverpool captain having made his England debut in 2010, and the wave of passion which defined Henderson’s celebration in the 4-0 win over Ukraine told its own story.

Indeed, Henderson’s overall performance after being introduced from the bench in England’s Euro 2020 quarter-final win was stellar, and there have been calls to hand him a starting berth for the semi-final against Denmark. Whilst England were the much better side against Ukraine, and won easily, the Denmark game is likely to be a lot tougher, especially when you consider the pressure that will be on England to reach the final. For that reason, Henderson’s wealth of experience could prove vital.

The only issue is that putting Henderson in the starting eleven would likely mean that Kalvin Phillips would drop out, which seems incredibly harsh on the Leeds United man, having played so well throughout the tournament. But Gareth Southgate has proved that he isn’t afraid to make tough decisions, and he certainly isn’t afraid to trust his own instincts over the baying masses on social media or in television studios.

Henderson is exactly the kind of player England need in the semi-final against Denmark. Although Southgate’s side are favourites in the England v Denmark betting, it will be a difficult challenge to take on another team who have momentum firmly on their side. The Danes will be hugely motivated to reach the final, especially after the difficult circumstances surrounding Christian Eriksen’s collapse in the opening match of the tournament, and it would be an incredible story if they could go all the way. England will need to be at their best, but someone of Henderson’s calmness and experience would be a major asset in helping England to dictate the match.

The goal against Ukraine will have given Henderson a massive confidence boost. Having missed a penalty against Romania in one of the England’s warm-up matches before the tournament, it had looked as though that first international goal would never come, but now that it has, the Liverpool man will be buoyed. Southgate may well want to harness that confidence in the semi-final as England seek to deliver on their status in the Euros winner odds.

While Phillips has performed admirably throughout the tournament so far, now may be the time to call on a more experienced head. The Leeds midfielder has no experience of playing in the latter stages of any major tournament, let alone the European Championships, and while some may argue that he deserves the opportunity to continue his good work in the team, the sensible decision would be to bring in Henderson to exert the control that Southgate wants in his team.

In many ways, Henderson can count himself unlucky that he hasn’t played a greater role in England’s Euros success so far. An injury at the back end of last season meant he was always racing against time to be fit for the Euros, and in the end, Southgate favoured Phillips over a not-quite-fit Henderson. If it hadn’t been for that injury, the 31-year-old would undoubtedly been starting alongside Declan Rice in midfield.

But there is still time for Henderson to leave his mark on this England team. Having grabbed a goal in the quarter-final, he has put himself in contention to start against Denmark, and you can’t say he doesn’t deserve it.

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