Tournaments can draw the curtain down on international careers. If Jordan Henderson looks at some of his midfield sidekicks, he can see that. Steven Gerrard retired from England duty after the 2014 World Cup, James Milner after Euro 2016. Henderson is 32 now, some 13 years older than Jude Bellingham, and the second-oldest player in Gareth Southgate’s squad, three weeks younger than the age-defying sprinter Kyle Walker.
If there was a temptation to think that he would concentrate on club football after the World Cup, think again. “As a kid, one of my dreams was to play for England, my biggest dream,” he said. “That will never change.” It’s that attitude which explains his unexpected presence in the England squad – the midfielder was in contact with Southgate during his recovery from a hamstring problem, talking himself back into contention even before Kalvin Phillips was ruled out.
