Jurgen Klopp has already explained why Liverpool will allow Jordan Henderson to leave

It’s a potential exit that has come out of the blue.

After seeing Jordan Henderson return to Liverpool duty in impeccable physical shape, plenty concurred that only one thing was on his mind - to remain at the forefront of Jurgen Klopp’s plans.

Doubts had been cast over Henderson’s role in the upcoming season. Having turned aged 33, coupled with the signings of Alexis Mac Allister and Dominic Szoboszlai for a combined fee of £95 million, sections of supporters queried where Henderson would fit into the Reds’ midfield. Tre

No-one questioned that he still had a job to do as club captain and that his experience would remain important. But in terms of playing time, there was uncertainty if he’d be Klopp’s go-to man in the engine room with two fresh faces, Trent Alexander-Arnold’s new hybrid remit and Curtis Jones’ barnstorming end-of-season to boot.

The fact that Henderson returned to the AXA Training Centre having worked profusely during the off-season suggested he was not ready to be a peripheral figure. Quite the opposite. And watching him in pre-season footage, keeping up in the latter stages of the infamous lactate test with Mo Salah implied that he was in prime condition.

Yet just days after returning for duty, Henderson’s Liverpool future is unclear. Steven Gerrard, his former Reds captain and Kop legend, is keen to sign Henderson for Saudi Arabia side Al-Ettifaq. Henderson is said to have agreed to a move and Liverpool want around £20 million.

There’s no doubt that Jurgen Klopp will be disappointed, should it happen, to see his skipper depart. Henderson has been the German’s trusted right-hand man ever since he walked through the Anfield arrival door in October 2015.

Together, they have spearheaded Liverpool’s return to the European elite. A sixth Champions League, a FA Cup, Carabao Cup, Club World Cup and UEFA Super Cup have all been hoisted aloft by Henderson, who’s carried out and relayed Klopp’s orders on the pitch impeccably. So has a maiden Premier League title, something that eluded Gerrard despite arguably being the club’s greatest-ever servant.

“Nothing we achieved in the last few years would have happened without him, that’s easy to say,” Klopp said in the documentary Jordan Henderson is Never Done.

“There are so many important things you do over a season to keep a group together, to keep a group going in difficult moments, and he is great in that.

“He has speed, he has endurance, so he can run for ages. Defensive skills are great, offensive skills are really great: awareness, vision, passing.

“I expect from him nothing else than I expect from all the others: be the best version of yourself as often as somehow possible. That gives us a good chance to win football games.

“He’s captain of my side because he was captain when I arrived here and I saw no need to change it – that’s maybe the biggest compliment. I obviously didn’t know Hendo when I arrived here; I knew him as a player but not as a person. He brings everything you need to lead a football team.”

Henderson is held in the highest esteem by Klopp and the rest of the dressing room. But the Liverpool manager is also not someone who keeps players if they don’t want to be at the club. Indispensable players have been allowed to reluctantly leave during his tenure.

Philippe Coutinho was granted an exit in January 2018 to fulfil his ambitions of playing for Barcelona. That’s despite having four-and-a-half years remaining on his contract and the Reds would have been within their right to block a move like they had six months prior.

Last summer, Sadio Mane was sold to Bayern Munich although he had a year remaining on his deal.

And in December when discussing potential exits ahead of the winter window, Klopp outlined that he will never force anyone to stay on Merseyside against their own will.

“Nobody came to me and asked if he can leave,” Klopp explained. “If that should be the case then I would listen because the last thing I would want to do was to force someone to stay at Liverpool. But again, nobody came yet.”

Should Henderson indeed knock on Klopp’s door and deliver the news he wants to bring the curtain down on his 12-year Liverpool journey then an amicable agreement may be met.