Jordan Henderson had never been beaten as Liverpool captain . He had won eight , drawn one , and lost none , yet Sod 's law dictated that record had to be ended by their great rivals . Liverpool lacked a leader in the first half , prompting Brendan Rodgers to bring Steven Gerrard on at half-time , and Henderson handed him the armband , as per . No sooner had Gerrard put it on his left bicep than he had to give it back , as he was sent off after just 38 seconds , and his deputy led Liverpool in their first Barclays Premier League defeat of 2015 . Jordan Henderson had a tough afternoon as captain as Manchester United inflicted his first defeat as skipper . Steven Gerrard receives a red card after just 38 seconds in the second half after coming off the bench . The sent off Gerrard throws the captain 's armband to Henderson after being sent off early in the second half . Henderson gets the armband back after relinquishing it to Gerrard for just 38 seconds of the second half . It was in June 2012 that Henderson received criticism , namely from Joey Barton , after being selected in England 's squad in place of the injured Frank Lampard . 'If Henderson got in , ' Barton wrote , 'any Englishman not currently in the squad has to feel aggrieved . ' Sir Alex Ferguson echoed that in 2013 , writing in his book that the midfielder ran from the knees . Henderson is a different animal these days , however . Thierry Henry deems his transformation 'truly unbelievable ' , while England manager Roy Hodgson calls it 'meteoric ' . He has grown into a leader and was preferred in the starting XI to Gerrard - the man that scored twice and celebrated by kissing the camera at Old Trafford in March 2014 . Yet that authority was absent amid a dire first 45 minutes . United , with Angel di Maria on the bench , were all over the team that had not been beaten in the Premier League since December 14 . By the 20th minute , Liverpool had one shot to their name - an effort from Daniel Sturridge that never troubled David de Gea . The visitors had 64.8 per cent possession , too . One-sided , to say the least . Henderson was captain of Liverpool on Sunday as they lost against their great rivals United . Daniel Sturridge ( from left to right ) , Philippe Coutinho and captain Henderson kick off after a United goal . Henderson battles with Marouane Fellaini for the ball during Liverpool 's Premier League defeat at Anfield . Henderson 's heat map shows his involvement was patchy against United at Anfield on Sunday . Click here for stats , heat maps and more from Sportsmail 's Match Zone service . Even by the 30th minute , goalkeeper Simon Mignolet had more touches than Henderson . It was n't working against Louis van Gaal 's quite brilliant team , and a change was needed . Liverpool had lost the four previous games in the Premier League when trailing by half-time , and Gerrard emerged from the tunnel , kitted with the captain 's armband already on . His stamp on Ander Herrera meant they would be the underdogs for some 44 minutes , and Henderson could sense his unbeaten record was about to end . Liverpool , to their credit , battled like a team that had not been beaten since late 2014 . Yet it was too little , too late , even after Daniel Sturridge gave them a glimpse of hope . That goal in the 69th minute was their first shot on target , but they could not find a second . Henderson , then , has become Gerrard 's natural replacement , and will be required for the next three games against Arsenal , Blackburn Rovers and Newcastle United in his absence . Liverpool captain Gerrard 's stamp on Ander Herrera saw him sent off at Anfield after just 38 seconds . Gerrard gave the armband back to Henderson as he was sent off against Liverpool 's great rivals United . Gerrard 's heat map against United as Liverpool failed to get into the Champions League race .
Jordan Henderson had never been beaten as team captain . He handed the armband to Steven Gerrard who came on at half - time . he was sent off after just 45 seconds for a foul on Ander Herrera . Henderson was handed the armband back and led the 10-man team . Daniel ##sley 's header in the 69th minute was Liverpool 's first on target . Liverpool 1 - 2 Manchester United : ben Mata double settles the match .