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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Sport
Jacob Leeks

Jordan Henderson mimics Mohamed Salah in distracting new role at Liverpool penalties

Sadio Mane used to love mimicking his Liverpool teammates' goalscoring celebrations.

Now he's gone, it appears Jordan Henderson has taken up his mantle of copying his Kop pals - albeit in a very different manner.

Liverpool secured a a 2-0 win over Rangers in the Champions League on Tuesday night, as Jurgen Klopp's men made it back to back home wins in the competition, having been thumped by Napoli in their opener in Italy. Trent Alexander-Arnold scored a wonderful free-kick in the first-half to set the hosts on their way to a win, before they doubled their lead after the break.

That goal came from the penalty spot, with Mohamed Salah stepping up to fire past Allan McGregor. Referee Clément Turpin pointed to the spot after Luis Diaz was tripped by Leon King as he looked to drive into the box.

Henderson had played the ball out wide to Diaz during the build-up, but it was his actions while Salah ran up to take his penalty that caught the eye. The Egyptian started his run-up looking very straight-on towards the goal, before side-stepping right and sprinting to drive the ball down the middle of the goal.

Eagle-eyed fans noticed on BT Sport's match footage from behind Salah that shows Henderson lining up directly behind him outside the box. And as the attacker started his run-up, Henderson copied him, side-stepping right before sprinting in.

HAVE YOUR SAY! Who was man of the match as Liverpool defeated Rangers? Comment below.

Henderson initially started centrally, behind Salah, as the Egyptian began his run up (BT Sport)
Henderson mimicked Salah's run-up and sprinted in behind him (BT Sport)

Was it in case McGregor made a save? Was it just to try and put off the Rangers stopper? One fan tweeted: "Watch Jordan Henderson mimic Salah's run up, just a little off centre, to try to distract the GK."

Either way, Salah made no mistake, sending McGregor diving the wrong way... in the direction that Henderson was running at him.

McGregor dives the wrong way as Salah finds the net (BT Sport)

Henderson himself was delighted that Liverpool were able to see off Rangers amid the increasing pressure around Anfield. And he hopes that the win can now kickstart their stuttering season.

"I felt good out there but I thought we played some really good stuff, change of formation a bit, first-half especially I thought we were really good. Intensity levels were there, overall we’ve got to be happy with the performance," he told BT Sport.

"I think we were focusing on what we needed to do, we had an idea that they would play five at the back. But, whether they play four or five you have to adapt to the situation in the game but we want to press with intensity when we do go. I felt as if we picked and choosed the right time, we waited for the right moments which is important in games.

"It felt good, intensity, energy, winning the ball back high up and everything, possession, making the last step and getting the ball. Overall we’ve got to pleased and it’s a step in the right direction.

"It’s about staying together as a team especially when you go through tough moments - we’ve been through plenty of them as a team - and we have to use our experience to get through this one."

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