Jurgen Klopp has offered an update on the future of Jordan Henderson, as negotiations over a new contract for the Liverpool captain continue.
Henderson has entered the final two years of his current deal at Anfield, and Goal understands that initial discussions over an extension have so far proven fruitless.
Liverpool have agreed new deals with the likes of Trent Alexander-Arnold, Fabinho and Virgil van Dijk already this summer, and hope to add Mo Salah to that list. Dialogue with Henderson, though, is ongoing.
What did Klopp say?
Asked how important it was that a resolution with Henderson is found, Klopp told reporters: “Important. But we will. We will sort it, however it will be. But we will sort it, no doubt about that.”
Henderson is likely to be on the bench for Liverpool’s Premier League opener at Norwich on Saturday, having been the last of the Reds’ first-team players to return to pre-season training after his summer break.
But Klopp says the 30-year-old is in good shape ahead of the new campaign.
He added: “I spoke yesterday to him and it looked like that, yes!”
‘We can still beat the best’
The theme of transfers, naturally, dominated Klopp’s first pre-match press conference of the season on Friday, with the German asked specifically about the spending of rivals such as Chelsea and Manchester City, as well as his own club’s relative lack of activity.
He said: “It’s not my position to judge what other clubs do. The thing I love most about football is that it is not about having the best players. It always gives you a chance to win a football game.
“Very often, we had the better players on the pitch and lost. If we face a team who has better players than us - I don’t see that, to be 100 per cent honest! - then at least we have a chance.
“Of course all the players that all the clubs signed have real quality. And yes, if Harry [Kane] is really going to Man City, that would not make them worse. It is incredible.
“But City were the best team last year and still didn’t win exactly what they wanted. That’s the situation. There are different things you can do in football.
“There is no criticism. I don’t 100% understand how it is possible, but it seems to be possible for them [to sign big-money players each summer].
“Why should I now be sitting here now saying ‘we should sign him’ or ‘we need him and him’. My job is to work with the players we have, and I love working with these players. I love each second.
“Now, let’s start the season and play the best football we can play. And when we play one of these big, big squads, we will try to win it with all we have.”
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