Jordan Henderson checks his diary for an award presentation date for this year’s NHS Big Tea fundraiser. He is the price. “I don’t know if that’s a good price,” he says, with typical modesty and a laugh. “But if we could get as many schools as possible to sign up for Big Tea, that would be great. I’ll visit the winner of the raffle and do a Q&A with the kids, even though it might be difficult over the next few weeks.” The Liverpool captain’s schedule is packed with a Champions League final once again.

History awaits the 31-year-old in Paris on Saturday. At the Stade de France, Henderson will become the first Englishman to lead a team to three Champions League or European Cup finals. “Wow, I didn’t know that,” he said. With a setback against Real Madrid, or another display of the might of Jürgen Klopp’s side, he will emulate Emlyn Hughes as captain of two-time European Cup winners Liverpool. Franco Baresi, Paolo Maldini and Carles Puyol are among the select group of skippers who have won the famous trophy more than once.

“You say Emlyn Hughes is the only Liverpool captain to win it twice,” says Henderson. “I’m sure he would have said it was the Liverpool team that won it twice, not him. That’s how I see it. If we manage to win it twice, that’s thanks to the team, it’s thanks to the manager, it’s thanks to the staff and everyone involved. When the time comes for me to think about it, that’s what I’ll think about. I don’t see it never really like “me”.

“Yes, I wear the armband on a game day and I’ve been here a long time but there are so many other leaders in the dressing room, so many great players, and it’s a team effort. It’s not about me trying to match other amazing captains that Liverpool have had, or trying to break records I’m lucky to be part of a world class team and I’m very proud to be able to wear the armband and lead the team. We will give it our all and hopefully bring another Champions League to Anfield.

Henderson is a humble and selfless leader, but speaks with firm conviction of the second Champions League final between Liverpool and Real Madrid in four years, moving to the city where Alan Kennedy’s goal decided the first confrontation clubs final 41 years ago.

“I would say they face a different Liverpool, that’s for sure,” says the midfielder. “We did very well to get there when we faced Madrid in the final in 2018. The guys were amazing. But we’ve grown since then. New players have arrived, we’ve been successful, we’ve also had some bad times during this period, and all that teaches you. I really think they are a different team to the one Madrid faced a few years ago.

The biggest difference Henderson identifies at Liverpool is not so much personnel – on Saturday Klopp could select eight members of the squad that started the 3-1 defeat at Kyiv – but their appetite for success. He has been insatiable throughout the quest for four trophies this season. Liverpool were delighted with their run to the 2018 final but were not the established winners. The Henderson shuffle before a trophy had not been seen. It will be played for the seventh time in three years if Liverpool clinch their seventh European Cup in Paris.

“The Champions League has always been a dream of mine to win, the Premier League has always been a dream of mine to win, and when you do that you have to reassess,” Henderson said. “You have to process this and think, ‘Now what?’ It’s about the next challenge and finding a way to want it even more. And I think when you succeed and earn trophies, it makes you want to go back there and do it all over again. You learn that “It’s about the journey and all the memorable games it takes to get there. This season has been incredible for that. To be in this position with a chance of a hat-trick in the last game of the season is an achievement in itself You have to give the guys credit for that.

“The hunger has always been there, and when you win, the hunger grows, and you start thinking about other challenges, like becoming a team that wins the Champions League twice. There aren’t many players who did that, so to win it twice would be amazing. It’s the same with the Premier League – the first Liverpool team to win it in 30 years. You make history all the time and that’s what The more trophies you earn, the more story you create.

Henderson will have family and friends in Paris, including his father, Brian, whose embrace with his son after the 2019 Champions League final was one of Madrid’s most emotional moments. “It would be nice to have a repeat of that,” said the England international, who was rested for all four Nations League matches in June. Rather, the NHS Big Tea is at the center of its summer schedule.

After organizing the #PlayersTogether initiative at the start of the pandemic – talks had started between Premier League captains before then-health secretary Matt Hancock called on players to ‘take a cut of pay and play their part” – Henderson, awarded an MBE for services to charity last year, is now an ambassador for NHS Charities Together. The organization works with over 230 NHS charities to provide additional help for staff, patients and volunteers, including counseling and psychological support for post-traumatic stress disorder, and funds over 700 projects community partnership.

The NHS Big Tea is the charity’s annual fundraiser, encouraging the nation to celebrate the NHS birthday by hosting a tea party while raising funds. Schools are encouraged to organize events that will contribute to staff mental health projects and the long-term recovery of the NHS from Covid-19. Participating schools will enter a free raffle for a chance to win a tour of Henderson. His NHS Big Tea promotion, which takes place on July 5, is his latest way to give back to the health service which treated his father for cancer in 2013.

“I’ve become more aware of the mental health aspect through #PlayersTogether and that’s something we’ve focused on with NHS Charities Together,” Henderson said. “We are pretty much back to normal life now, but the last few years have had a massive impact on NHS staff. It was really moving to meet some of the staff and hear what they went through. It was a very humbling experience. I have a huge admiration for what they do and what they have done over the last few years, and if I can help them a little, I will. Hopefully as many people across the country as possible can do the same by signing up for Big Tea.

Henderson stays in regular contact with NHS Charities Together chief executive Ellie Orton about how #PlayersTogether revenue is allocated. “Ellie knows better than I where she needs to go. But she updates me and when I go to the hospitals she tells me what has been done to help, whether it’s quiet rooms, spaces, bringing in staff to help with the aspect mental health, packages for staff families during Covid, communities; many different areas. I was delighted to see that it had a huge impact on the pandemic.

“It depends on the players who got involved, not only on the money side – and I know the money has helped and will help – but the emotional element of the support we gave to the staff during this period was also important. Lots of people love football in this country and I’m sure a lot of staff look up to different players in different teams, so for them coming together and supporting NHS staff when needed has had the biggest impact. We didn’t want PlayersTogether to be public, we knew it would probably come out eventually, but we wanted to do it privately and we wanted to do it because we wanted to help.

Klopp tried to help his players through the intensity of a 63-game season with no room for error by repeating the mantra: enjoy the journey. Henderson is in no doubt that Liverpool will recover from the deflation of the Premier League final before reaching the final destination in Paris.

“I’m trying [to enjoy the journey],” he said. “It’s tough with all the pressure and all the games, but I have to give the guys so much credit for the way they handle it, for the mentality, the focus in every game every three days, it’s incredible. We have one last big push in a Champions League final and we absolutely have to give it our all. I hope we can bring the trophy back to Anfield. It will be a very good season if that’s the case. The guys and the fans deserve it no matter what.