From renting a van for the Euros final to an England comeback

Henderson, now 34, has rediscovered his form in the Eredivisie despite a turbulent winter when he was on the verge of joining Monaco. Having regained the trust of Ajax fans, his performances have also caught the attention of England manager Thomas Tuchel, who handed him minutes in both recent internationals.

His return to the national team marks a significant turnaround from last summer, when Southgate, who had previously been a firm supporter of Henderson, excluded him from the squad. Rather than watch the tournament from home, Henderson decided to travel to Berlin for the final, taking an unconventional route.

Speaking to The Guardian, he explained how he rented a van and drove from Amsterdam to the German capital with his family. "I wasn't sure until the last moment whether I'd be able to go, depending on my training schedule. But when I realised I had the next day off, I knew I had to find a way to be there. To my surprise, there were no flights available from either England or Amsterdam, so I checked the distance to Berlin and decided to rent a van," he revealed.

The journey took him nearly seven hours, during which he encountered several England fans making the same pilgrimage. "It was fun meeting the supporters on the road. Obviously, I would have preferred to be with the team, but I still wanted to be there. I had this feeling we could win, so I needed to see it in person. In the end, it wasn't to be, but I was happy to watch my teammates play in the final," he added.

Despite being left out of the Euros squad and subsequently overlooked by Lee Carsley, Henderson never considered retiring from international duty. "I never thought my England career was over. If I had, I would have retired from international football. Of course, I was disappointed to miss the Euros, but I still felt physically strong and didn't want to close that door. Deep down, I always believed I could return," he said.

Henderson made his England debut on 17 November 2010 in a 2-1 friendly defeat to France. Since then, he has played at three European Championships (2012, 2016, and 2020, held in 2021) and three World Cups (2014, 2018, and 2022).

If he makes it to the 2026 tournament, he will do so at the age of 37. If not, he will at least have another chance to take a road trip to watch England on the big stage.