Liverpool's Jordan Henderson has admitted that he wanted to take the penalty given by the referee to the Reds in their Europa League clash against Besiktas on Thursday.
Jordon Ibe was brought down inside the box by Ramon Motta five minutes from time, with Henderson - captaining the side in the absence of Steven Gerrard - looking set to take the subsequent spot kick.
However, Mario Balotelli appeared to take the ball out of the 24-year-old's hands before stepping up and converting the penalty to give Liverpool a 1-0 win.
Henderson told BBC Sport after the game: "It was a big goal, I thought we kept the ball well at times and we deservedly got the goal at the end. It was a big goal for us and especially keeping the clean sheet.
"I wanted the penalty, Mario felt confident and he has taken big penalties before. Everyone wants to take them. I felt confident in Mario, he has taken big penalties before and he got the nod."
Liverpool will travel to Istanbul for the second leg next Thursday.
Giuseppe Labellarte
