'We have to maintain our standards, live up to our responsibilities'
Jordan Henderson has challenged Liverpool to build on the positive Champions League result they secured earlier in the week, starting today against Everton.
The Reds took control of their last-16 tie with RB Leipzig by producing a fine display in Budapest to record a 2-0 first-leg victory.
And with the squad's focus quickly turning towards this evening's Merseyside derby, Henderson and his teammates are out to put things right domestically after a run of three consecutive defeats.
In his column for the matchday programme, the captain writes: "It hasn't been an easy season for us. We had a great result against RB Leipzig in midweek, but that doesn't mask our league form, which hasn't been good enough.
"There are reasons for this and there are also mitigating factors, but our responsibility as players is to make the best of whatever situation we are confronted by and in recent weeks this hasn't happened often enough.
"Throughout this period we have stuck together and the feeling has been that we just needed a springboard to kick on from.
"That meant producing the kind of performance and getting the kind of result that we came up with in Budapest on Tuesday but – and I have to stress this – there's no point giving yourself an opportunity to turn things around if you don't go on to take full advantage of it.
"That would have been our challenge today no matter who we were playing. The fact that it is Everton doesn't change this objective, if anything it heightens it.
"It's no good doing well on foreign soil if you don't maintain those standards on your own turf.
"The pressure and the privilege of Liverpool is that you are expected to win every game and we need to get back to a standard which makes sense of that ambition by becoming more consistent and showing our quality week in, week out."
He continues: "I know we are still in lockdown, but if we can give you something to celebrate tonight – in the comfort of your own homes with your immediate family, of course – that would give all of us a massive boost, especially after a tough run that we know won't have been easy for you.
"I can't promise a victory, you never can, but as captain I can commit to every one of us who is fortunate enough to pull on a red shirt, today of all days, giving their all in the hope that this will bring its own rewards.
"The manager said last week that we always play for our people and never is this more true than when we face Everton. We are aware of our responsibilities, now we have to live up to them."
