Liverpool have had a below-par season so far but Jordan Henderson led by example as they qualified for the knockout stages of the Champions League on Wednesday night.<br /><br />The Reds beat Ajax 3-0 in Amsterdam to seal their passage into the last 16 of the competition but it took a moment of magic from their captain to get them into gear.<br /><br />Mohamed Salah may have been the goalscorer, but Henderson produced a piece of sublime skill to set up the opening goal for Jurgen Klopp's side.<br /><br />Collecting a pass on the left wing, Henderson took a touch before playing a brilliant defence-splitting pass with the outside of his right foot to play Salah in on goal.<br /><br /><br />The forward duly delivered with a deft first-time shot to open the scoring in the 42nd minute.<br /><br />While Salah's finish was lovely, Henderson's pass quite rightly caught the eye of Rio Ferdinand.<br /><br />'Liverpool were on the ropes a little bit but this pass from Jordan Henderson was absolutely exquisite,' the BT Sport pundit reflected. 'It is absolutely phenomenal.'<br /><br />Leading 1-0 at half-time, Liverpool came out of the interval firing and extended their lead with Darwin Nunez's header on 49 minutes and Harvey Elliott's emphatic finish three minutes later to complete the scoreline.<br /><br />Despite a fine display, there was cause for concern for Henderson as he was forced off with 19 minutes remaining after a clash of knees with Ajax midfielder Edson Alvarez.<br /><br />However, speaking post-match Klopp allayed any fears when asked if the 32-year-old was fine: 'I think so, I was worried as well, I saw the situation because it was in front of me.<br /><br />'I think he got knee on knee, so (it was) painful. A bruise, probably, really painful. But as far as I know now nothing else.'<br /><br />Liverpool host Leeds next in the Premier League on Sunday and will be hoping Henderson can supply their forward line with more passes like against Ajax.
