On Saturday, Jordan Henderson made only his third appearance for Chelsea as Xabi Alonso’s side earned a brilliant 2-0 away win at Everton – but there is one stat that shows he’s leading by example.

A Pedro Neto brace got the job done for Chelsea as Alonso finally secured his first Premier League clean sheet as a manager, and Chelsea’s first in 23 Premier League games. That is despite Emi Martinez’s injury.

Henderson started and finished the match for Chelsea, which he has done in all three of his appearances this season. He and Moises Caicedo are forming a solid partnership in midfield, with Reece James injured.

Jordan Henderson’s running stats are literally off the charts

In his first game for Chelsea – in which Henderson was given a tasty reception by Brentford fans – the England veteran was only outrun by Pep Chavarria with just a tenth of a kilometre between the duo.

But for the last two games, Henderson has blown his Chelsea teammates and all opposition out of the water. Against Bournemouth and Everton, he has topped the running charts of any player playing.

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Against Bournemouth, he ran 11.9km – half a kilometre above second-best Chavarria. On Saturday, he went a tenth further, running 12.0km. Next-best was ex-Chelsea ace Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall with 11.3km.

Henderson is not only showing leadership off the pitch, but on it too. Constantly organising his Chelsea teammates, but also doing so with his stamina, which infectiously gets everyone else working hard.

Chelsea have outrun three teams in the Premier League so far

It is clearly an area that Alonso has identified as a major flaw of last season. Chelsea were outrun in 37 of 38 Premier League games last season. This time around, they have outrun their opponents three times.

The away win over Fulham, and then the wins over Bournemouth and Everton, have seen Chelsea clock up a bigger distance than The Cherries and The Toffees. Henderson is the catalyst; teammates are listening.

Going into the weekend, Chelsea were 13th in the Premier League for total distance covered. While that is not particularly impressive, it is a massive improvement on last season. Chelsea were rock bottom.

It is difficult to understand how good Henderson has been. Steven Gerrard thinks he will be annoyed at being described as a squad player, signed for his experience. He is proving he is so much more than that.