James Milner speaks out on giving up the Liverpool captaincy for Jordan Henderson

Henderson returned to Anfield from the bench in Liverpool's win over Swansea

JAMES MILNER handed the armband to Jordan Henderson against Swansea as the ex-Sunderland man completed his comeback from a broken foot.

 

Milner, despite it being his first season at the club, had been standing in as skipper, but rushed to make sure Henderson was restored to the role on his return.

But the former Manchester City midfielder did not begrudge giving up the captaincy in a game where Daniel Sturridge also returned to action.

"It's amazing to see those two back, they're top players," Milner said.

 

"Any team in the league would miss them so to get them back is great. It's a great honour for me to wear that armband but I'm delighted I've passed it on to Jordan because it means he's back in the team. 

"He's a top player and we need him. Hopefully those two can stay fit.

"It shows the depth that we've got in the squad now, you look at the bench today, how strong it was, and there are still a number of players out."

Jurgen Klopp's arrival at Liverpool has been blighted by players going down with injury: Danny Ings and Joe Gomez are both out with knee injuries, while Sturridge and Henderson made their first appearance under the new manager on Sunday.

 

Milner scored the only goal of the game, converting from the penalty spot

Liverpool were given another boost on Monday as John Flanagan, who missed all of last season with a serious knee injury, returned to training, as did another absentee: Steven Gerrard, although his presence is a more temporary one.

Training has been more intense and more regular since Klopp's arrival, as he attempts to instil his new system into his group of players.

However, the hard work already appears to be paying off, as the Reds have racked up three straight wins ahead of a Capital One Cup quarterfinal against Southampton.

 

And with the Premier League wide open, Milner fully expects Liverpool to start challenging on multiple fronts.

"I think if you look at the fixtures we've played already, we've played a lot of tough teams away from home, so that's obviously nice," he added.

"We're coming into a busy period now in good form. 

"There are so many games over Christmas, the league table changes a lot over that period, and hopefully it changes for the better and we keep moving up, working hard, and improving."