Jordan Henderson has attributed Liverpool’s belief against Barcelona to Jürgen Klopp and the manager’s prediction of a night to tell their grandchildren about, as the captain savoured the greatest moment of his career and proving doubters wrong again.

Henderson will lead Liverpool into a second consecutive Champions League final on 1 June following their incredible comeback from 3-0 down against the Spanish champions. The midfielder was immense in the 4-0 victory at Anfield despite suffering a knee injury that required a pain-killing injection at half-time. He admitted the refusal to concede defeat against Lionel Messi and co, despite being without Mohamed Salah and Roberto Firmino, stemmed from Klopp’s team talk.

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Henderson said: “From the talk he gave before the game before we came to the stadium, I think the players could see that the manager believed, which helped us believe in what he said. He said we can enjoy the night and maybe tell the grandkids one day it was a special night.

“The manager has ingrained that belief into us: no matter what happens you keep fighting right until the final whistle goes. That is what we have done all season and we will continue to do that on Sunday and in the final as well. Two big games to look forward to and we just have to keep with that belief and that spirit and then we will be OK.”

Henderson described the comeback as “the top” moment of his career and an unbelievable night. “From start to finish I thought the lads were amazing,” he said. “I think a lot of people would have written us off but we have a belief in this team. We knew that if we gave everything, you never know what can happen in football. I think we proved quite a few people wrong. We showed that if you never give up and you keep trying you can produce special things and create a special night.”

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Liverpool’s injury problems have increased before Sunday’s potential Premier League title decider against Wolves, with Henderson, Andy Robertson, Fabinho and Sadio Mané taking knocks in the semi-final. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain was ruled out before kick-off with a slight muscle problem. Salah will be available having missed the second leg because of head injury protocols but Roberto Firmino and Naby Keïta are out and Liverpool will assess the rest of the Barcelona walking wounded.

“I was struggling a little bit when I got a whack on the knee,” Henderson said. “It was dead. The doctor said: ‘Just keep it moving.’ I managed to get to half-time and I had a bit of treatment, took painkillers, all that stuff, which helped. There was a jab and tablets. I said: ‘Just give us everything.’ So I managed to get through it and the crowd helped as well and keep us going. It was an amazing night and honoured to be part of it and contribute.”

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Henderson was disappointed at being among the substitutes for the first leg defeat and admitted that, not for the first time, he felt he had a point to prove. “I quite enjoy it now; I’ve got used to it!” he said. “It is only a display from me because of my teammates. It is nothing to do with one person. Yes, I contributed but so did everyone else who played. It was everybody together.

“Throughout my career I have always wanted to prove people wrong and that will never change. I will continue to do that until I finish playing football. Football is like that anyway; it changes that quickly. Whether you are winning trophies or not there are always questions asked, someone else saying you cannot do this or that, so there is always things that you want to prove. I want to improve as a footballer and to contribute to the team being successful.”