Chamberlain return will be huge for Liverpool following recent Henderson form

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Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain is on the brink of a return for Liverpool’s first-team.

The midfielder has been sidelined for the past 10 months after sustaining an ACL injury in last season’s Champions League clash against AS Roma.

The star was forced to miss the final against Real Madrid and the World Cup finals in Russia with England.

According to The Daily Mail, the Englishman will take to the field for the U23s against Derby County on Friday.

The ex-Arsenal man has been in full training for the past month or so and is seemingly now ready to get some game time.

It looks as though his first-team return could be very soon, and that could be a huge boost for Liverpool, with Jordan Henderson having come under fire once again following recent matches.

Proactive Chamberlain

In Liverpool’s most recent away derby matches against Manchester United and Everton, Henderson was poor.

The England international was seemingly unhappy to have been substituted in the second half against United, but arguably could have no complaints.

Against Everton, Henderson was often reluctant to play the ball forwards with incision. According to Premier League Panel, he made just two penetrative forward passes and a disappointing 16 backwards ones.

With the Reds having failed to win, manager Jurgen Klopp faced criticism for trusting Henderson over Naby Keita and Xherdan Shaqiri.

Oxlade-Chamberlain’s availability will be a big boost for Liverpool as he is much more forward-thinking than his fellow countryman.

He is much better at driving forwards with the ball and is also riskier in possession, which is what is sometimes required to break down a stubborn opponent.

Henderson’s ‘safe’ style has seen him create just eight chances in the Premier League this season, according to Squawka, and the Reds will need more if they are to win the league.