Henderson, not Milner, will lift Europa League trophy if Liverpool win

Stand-in Liverpool skipper James Milner said Jordan Henderson will lift the Europa League trophy if the Merseyside club beat Sevilla in the final.

Henderson is only a slim chance of playing in the May 18 final after injuring ligaments in his knee during the first leg of their Europa League quarter-final against Borussia Dortmund. 

Milner has stepped in to replace the injured skipper since then, but the England international assured team-mate Henderson the trophy is all his if Liverpool defeat Sevilla in the decider.

“Hendo will lift it if we win it. Hendo will lift it even if he isn’t in the squad,” Milner said. 

“He’s the captain of Liverpool and I have so much respect for him. There’s no doubt in my mind that will happen.”

However, Milner admits the responsibility of being captain is something he does not exactly enjoy. 

“Obviously since I’ve been here when Hendo’s been out I have been given the armband. I captained Manchester City too and was fortunate to be England skipper this season as well,” he added.

“I know what a great honour it is to be a captain here. It’s a great honour to captain any team but a team the size of Liverpool, it’s massive.

“I don’t really enjoy it. Not really. Obviously you do the toss but apart from that you try not to change whether I am wearing the armband or not.

“To be honest, I don’t like doing it because it means Hendo is injured and not playing and he’s our captain and a top player.”