Very few flowers have bloomed at Crystal Palace so far this season, but one man who continues to flourish is Dean Henderson.
Palace take the trip up to Villa Park on Saturday while languishing nervously in the relegation zone, 18th in the Premier League, and yet players and fans alike can feel a debt of gratitude to Henderson for the fact things are not even worse.
They have been saved, on numerous occasions, by the steadily improving performances of their goalkeeper.
Henderson officially inherited the Eagles’ No1 shirt in the summer, when England team-mate Sam Johnstone pushed for a move to Wolves after losing his starting berth to Henderson amid injury in the tail end of last season.
One source close to Henderson explained to Standard Sport that they believe he is the sort of player and person who thrives when shown faith. Oliver Glasner has made him the club’s undisputed No1, and it certainly seems to be working.
The Eagles finished last term in blinding form under their Austrian head coach, and the one constant between those heady few months and their lumbering start to the new campaign is Henderson’s continued strong form.
It was an injury-ravaged first half of last season at Palace for Henderson, but the 27-year-old has not looked back since — instead keeping a clean sheet at Anfield in April and being named in England’s squad for Euro 2024.
Henderson has been described as possessing a “huge amount of self-belief”, and he always had unerring faith that he would go right to the top.
Now 27, he is entering what ought to be his peak years. With Thomas Tuchel starting his job as the new England manager on January 1, Henderson will have already set his sights on impressing the German to the point of dislodging Jordan Pickford, who has been the Three Lions’ first-choice goalkeeper since 2017.
It certainly boded well for Henderson that his club form was rewarded with a first start for his country in last month’s 3-1 win over Finland in Helsinki.
Injuries have followed Henderson wherever he has been, hampering his progress at Manchester United.
Oliver Glasner has made him the club’s undisputed No1 and it certainly seems to be working.
They have also limited his game time for England. He had to drop out of the Euro 2020 squad after the opening game against Croatia because of a hip injury sustained in training, and he then failed to make the Qatar World Cup squad in 2022. It is why he was so proud to be picked for Euro 2024, even though he did not play.
Over the summer, Henderson had to come to terms with the tragic death of his father Dougie, who had supported him throughout his career. “This last year has been so difficult,” Henderson wrote on social media.
On the pitch, his levels have not wavered, with only five goalkeepers having made more saves in the Premier League so far this season.
A lack of squad depth, continued injury woes and a shortage of attacking creativity have all contributed to Palace’s downward trajectory in the first four months of the season, but Henderson has been the mainstay.
With the festive period really beginning now that the November international break is over, it is high time for Palace’s key men to step up. For Henderson, that simply means continuing to play as well as he has been. He’s their player of the season so far.
