Why Henderson would bring more than experience to Chelsea

[Getty Images] A marked change in Chelsea's approach to recruitment has been amplified by prospective deals for veterans Danny Welbeck and Jordan Henderson . Welbeck will become the oldest signing under the Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital ownership, until Henderson's likely arrival with the west Londoners. After interest in Sunderland 's Granit Xhaka did not materialise into a deal, attention pivoted to other targets as part of new manager Xabi Alonso's drive to add experience to Chelsea's squad, which has been the youngest in the Premier League for the past two seasons. But aside from a wealth of trophy-winning experience, Henderson also brings with him something brutally exposed as lacking from the Blues' squad - legs. No player to feature five or more times in the Premier League for Chelsea last term covered more ground per 90 than Henderson's average of 11.86km. Despite being 36-years-old, he started 22 times and was bought on a further 10 times. Already since his arrival, Alonso has stressed the importance of energy and intensity. Speaking on the Blues' pre-season tour, he said: "We need good energy. We need to run. We need to work hard. We need the sacrifices which are compulsory and mandatory in each Premier League game. To win each game, it's tough. We need to prepare for that." Last season, remarkably, the first time Chelsea outran an opponent was against Liverpool in their 35th match of the campaign. It is unlikely Alonso will allow a similar pattern to develop. The Spaniard is known for his willingness to participate and be hands-on in training sessions and told club media, before Chelsea opened their pre-season with a win over Western Sydney Wanderers, that: "I need to be close to the team, to participate with the energy, with the intensity I like." Alonso cannot marshal the Blues' midfield himself, so a big character to be his voice on the pitch and lead by example with intensity and energy - as Xhaka did for him during his time at Bayer Leverkusen - is imperative to maintain standards. Enter Henderson, with his impressive running stats and track record as a leader. Eyebrows were raised by his inclusion in England's World Cup squad this summer, but Thomas Tuchel insisted Henderson is "the glue in every team that he plays for" and new Chelsea team-mate Morgan Rogers said he is the "best guy I've ever come across in football". Speaking two years ago on former England goalkeeper Ben Foster's podcast about a game in which their Watford side was comfortably beaten by a Liverpool team captained by Henderson, Tom Cleverley said: "He was like an on-field manager with so much quality to go with it. Even players like [Mohamed] Salah and [Sadio] Mane were looking at him like, 'help us'. They completely respected Henderson and knew he was their leader. They would have followed him anywhere." Three glaring issues in last season's Chelsea squad were inexperience, a lack of leadership, and a repeated inability to match an opponent's energy and running. In pursuing Henderson, the Chelsea board have identified these and are looking to address all three. In this sense, it is a move that makes a lot of sense. *Stats provided by Opta