Henderson enthused by Liverpool progress
Liverpool midfield player Jordan Henderson believes his team will continue their recent improvement in form when they visit Tottenham Hotspur on Wednesday.
Brendan Rodgers' team are still labouring just outside the Premier League's top 10 and have won just one of their six away league games to date this season.
But a solid performance at Swansea City on Sunday brought a goalless draw that extended Liverpool's unbeaten league run to eight games – a sequence dating back to the end of September.
It is a run that has convinced Henderson, himself now coming into better form, that the Reds can continue to move forward.
"Yes, I definitely think we believe we can keep pushing on, keep getting higher in the league and keep putting on performances," said Henderson.
"There is a lot of confidence and togetherness growing in the team.
"To be fair, everybody has taken on board what the manager wants really well and I think over the last few weeks we have seen improvements and played quite well, so we will look forward to Wednesday."
Henderson, a £16 million ($25.6 million, 19.8 million euros) signing by Kenny Dalglish less than 18 months ago, will also be hoping he can retain his place at White Hart Lane, having started for the first time this season at Swansea.
"It was my chance to get my first start, work hard, try to get forward as much as I could," said Henderson.
"I was happy with the way things went, but I have to improve an awful lot of things.
"It has been a bit different, obviously, at Sunderland and in my first season at Liverpool I played a lot of games, but I still feel as if I am learning and the manager is helping me progress my game and improve my game."
Tottenham's 3-1 victory over West Ham United brought an end to an alarming run that had seen Andre Villas-Boas' side lose four of their five previous Premier League games.
Aside from Jermain Defoe's brace and a fine display from Gareth Bale, the game was notable for the display of Clint Dempsey, who produced his best performance for the club since his August move from Fulham.
The United States international, 29, has taken time to settle in north London and has only offered flickering glimpses of the form that brought him 23 goals last season.
Dempsey admits it has been a frustrating period.
"I've been looking at videos with the manager and just trying to figure out a way to make an impact and help the team," he said.
"Every team is different and there's a period of adjustment. I didn't have a pre-season at all, so I'm trying to play catch-up a little bit.
"I've been frustrated at not really getting on the ball or affecting games. I'm better when I can go on the half-turn and face my opponents, rather than playing with my back to goal.
"Against West Ham, I did a better job in that respect and I thought I did well."
Michael Dawson also caught the eye against West Ham, on his first Premier League start of the season.
The centre-back has been out of favour under Villas-Boas and came close to leaving the club during the last transfer window, but his display means he is in contention to retain his place.
He said: "Of course, it has been frustrating. Every player wants to play, not just me.
"The important thing is that from the first minute against West Ham, we pressed them everywhere and put them on the back foot, and that makes a defender's job much easier."
Striker Emmanuel Adebayor will again be missing while he sits out the second game of a three-match ban following his red card in the 5-2 defeat at Arsenal.
