Liverpool Captain, Henderson Named FWA Player Of The Year

– Liverpool Captain, Henderson has been named the Football Writers’ Association (FWA) Footballer

– Henderson was voted winner by FWA’s members

– The award recognizes the best player in English football annually

Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson has been named the Football Writers’ Association (FWA) Footballer of the Year for the 2019-20 Premier League season.

Henderson won ahead of Manchester City’s Kevin De Bruyne,  after been voted winner by FWA’s members.

The Reds midfielder played a central role as the Anfield club stormed their way to the Premier League title, their first English top-flight crown in 30 years.

The FWA Footballer of the Year – the oldest individual award in English football, given out every year since 1948 – is given to the player considered both to have had an outstanding impact on their club’s performance in the season, as well as having performed well individually throughout the campaign.

In his appreciation speech, Henderson said: “I’d like to say how appreciative I am of the support of those who voted for me and the Football Writers’ Association in general. You only have to look at the past winners of it, a number of whom I’ve been blessed to play with here at Liverpool, like Stevie [Gerrard], Luis (Suarez) and Mo [Salah] to know how prestigious it is.

“As grateful as I am I don’t feel like I can accept this on my own. I don’t feel like anything I’ve achieved this season or in fact during my whole career has been done on my own. I owe a lot to so many different people, but none more so than my current team-mates, who have just been incredible and deserve this every bit as much as I do.

“We’ve only achieved what we’ve achieved because every single member of our squad has been brilliant. Not just in matches, not just in producing the moments that make the headlines and the back pages, but every day in training.

“The players who’ve started the most games for us this season have been as good as they have been because of our culture and our environment at Melwood. No one individual is responsible for that – it’s a collective effort and that’s how I view accepting this honour.

“I accept it on behalf of this whole squad, because without them I’m not in a position to be receiving this honour. These lads have made me a better player – a better leader and a better person. If anything I hope those who voted for me did so partly to recognise the entire team’s contribution.

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“Individual awards are nice and they are special and I will cherish this one, but an individual award without the collective achievement wouldn’t mean anywhere as much to me – if anything at all.”

The England international also played a crucial role in setting up the #PlayersTogether initiative, which helps raise and distribute money for Britain’s National Health Service amid the COVID-19 crisis.

Henderson also won the Champions League last season, as well as the FIFA Club World Cup and UEFA Super Cup in 2019/2020.