Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson has paid tribute to the Queen on behalf of everyone at the Premier League club.
Britain is currently in the midst of a 10-day period of mourning for Her Majesty, who passed away aged 96 at Balmoral on Thursday. Liverpool were among the sides who had their Premier League fixtures postponed over the weekend as a mark of respect for the Queen.
The Reds will return to action on Tuesday evening, as they face Ajax at Anfield in the Champions League. And ahead of the fixture, Henderson visited Liverpool Town Hall on Monday to sign the book of condolence for Queen alongside Liverpool women’s captain Niamh Fahey.
“For Her Majesty, on behalf of everyone at @LFC,” Henderson tweeted to his 1.8million followers alongside a picture of him signing the book. Liverpool confirmed on Monday that the Ajax match would be preceded by a minute’s silence, while players would also wear black armbands for the Queen.
A club statement read: “Liverpool Football Club will mark the passing of Her Majesty The Queen at Tuesday's Champions League tie against AFC Ajax.
“Players, officials, staff and supporters will come together for a period of silence before kick-off. Players will also wear black armbands as a mark of respect.
“Flags at Anfield have been lowered to half-mast and will remain so throughout the full mourning period. The club crests on all social media platforms have also changed to black and white, representing the colours of the mourning period.”
There will also be another change to the usual pre-match routine in the Champions League this evening. The Champions League anthem will not be played at Anfield or any other British grounds during the latest round of fixtures, because the song’s inspiration, Handel’s Messiah, is to be played at the future coronation of King Charles III.
In his pre-match press conference, Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp appealed to the club’s fans to show respect during the pre-match silence. He said: “I think it is the right thing to do but I don’t think our people need any kind of advice from me for showing respect. There are plenty of examples where people showed exactly the right respect.
“One which surprised me and I was really proud of that moment was last season when we played Manchester United around a very sad situation with Cristiano Ronaldo ’s family. And that is what I expect. For me, it is clear that’s what we have to do. That’s it.”
Liverpool come into the match on the back of a chastening 4-1 defeat away to Napoli last week. Klopp’s side were 3-0 down at half-time in Italy and will be desperate to bounce back against Ajax, who kicked off their Champions League campaign with a thumping 4-0 win over Rangers last week.
Liverpool's Premier League game against Chelsea on Sunday has been postponed due to a lack of available police the day before the state funeral for the Queen.
