Jordan: Boss has improved my game
Jordan Henderson believes important aspects of his game have developed significantly under the guidance of Brendan Rodgers.
The former Sunderland man played more matches than any other Liverpool player last season in positions across the Reds' midfield and the 22-year-old insists he learned plenty during his first season on Merseyside.
However, since the arrival of Rodgers, he feels has been able to add a whole new level of maturity to his play and develop a better understanding of when to press and when to hold.
"Obviously when a new manager comes into a club then things can change, that's natural," he told the Liverpool Echo. "You just have to believe in your own ability, believe that you are a good enough player and then show it.
"Brendan Rodgers has come in and has been brilliant for me personally. He has definitely helped me improve different parts of my game already.
"I think in the games I have managed to play, you can see that I have improved upon certain things, and that is because of him.
"I took a lot of positives from my first year here, but there were also negatives, and I understand that.
"The thing I needed to do was to learn from the negative aspects. Without those setbacks, you cannot move forward and become a stronger person. That's how I look at it. I took the negatives on the chin and moved forward.
"I think it has definitely made me stronger, certainly mentally, and in the long run a season like last season will be a good thing for me because it has helped me grow up and toughen up.
"The areas he has asked me to work on were mostly to do with discipline, and tactical awareness in the team.
"I've developed my understanding of when to go forward, when to stay and things like that. I think you can see there is a lot more maturity in my performances, and I think that is down to his guidance.
"The style we play under Brendan is nice. It is good for midfield players like myself because we get a lot of the ball and the chance to get involved. I've enjoyed it so far, and hopefully it will only get better."
Last season the England U21s captain was asked to occupy a wide position for many of the Reds' games by manager Kenny Dalglish.
This time around Henderson, who has featured prominently in the cup competitions so far for Rodgers, has predominantly lined-up in the centre of the park.
And while the No.14 admits he prefers the more central position, he insists he is happy to fulfil any role the manager asks him to.
"I think it was just a phase in my development that I needed to go through [playing on the right]," he said. "I played wide quite a lot last season. I do probably prefer to play in the middle, but at this stage I am just delighted to play football.
"I've played wide right before, so it wasn't a huge problem. I knew what to do. I enjoyed it at times last season, playing wide, but I think this season I have focused a lot more on being a central midfield player, and that is where my future is."