Jordan Henderson Heaps Praise on Liverpool's Youngsters After Ajax Win

Jordan Henderson was full of praise for Liverpool's young guns following the Reds' 1-0 Champions League win over Ajax.

Jurgen Klopp's side are in the midst of an injury crisis, leading to several youth academy graduates getting their chance to impress on Tuesday evening. Two of them, Neco Williams and Curtis Jones, combined to score the game's only goal in the second half, while goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher made several important saves to deny Ajax.

Speaking after the game to Liverpool's website, captain Henderson was quick to praise all three players for their contribution.

"Unbelievable, isn't he? Outstanding, some of the saves he made, important saves," he said of Kelleher. "His distribution was excellent, coming out and commanding his area. I thought he was outstanding and a real plus for us.

"I'm delighted for Curt because he's worked really hard. He listens, he wants to learn all the time and I think over the last few weeks you've seen the maturity in his play and he's been outstanding. He deserved his goal. 

"A great ball from Neco – I thought he overhit it, so I might have given him a bit of stick when he hit it! But it was a fantastic ball in the end. So I'm delighted for both of them."

The victory confirmed Liverpool's progression to the round of 16, and Henderson said that the result provided further evidence of the Reds' strong character.

"We knew it would be a tough game and there's things we can be better in and, of course, we probably could have scored two or more goals, especially in the second half," he added.

"But I'm really delighted with the performance and the character of the team with the setback of injuries that we've had of late. But to keep fighting and to get the three points and win the group is massive for us, so I'm delighted with that."

Attention now turns back to Premier League action, with Jurgen Klopp's side hosting Wolves at Anfield on Sunday.