Liverpool is pursuing one of the most controversial transfer campaigns in recent years. The club had a great start to the summer, signing Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Soboslai to replace midfielders who left before the start of pre-season. But perestroika suddenly became completely global, as Fabinho and Jordan Henderson were taken to Saudi Arabia. Naturally, the question of a new defensive midfielder arose, and here Liverpool really failed. The club had been negotiating for Southampton’s Romeo Lavia for a long time, suddenly switched to a battle with Chelsea for Brighton’s Moises Caicedo, and in the end lost both.
How Chelsea and Liverpool fought over Caicedo:
Liverpool suddenly outbid for Chelsea’s main target. But it didn’t help Klopp.
Several midfielders have been linked to Liverpool in recent days, but the first to reach this position was a player who was not mentioned at all by journalists. The transfer of Wataru Endo from “Stuttgart” took place in just a couple of days. Don’t know who this player is? Okay, let’s meet.
Endo is the leader. And he initially he is not a supporter at all.
Briefly about the race Wataru is 30 years old and started in 2010 in his homeland of Japan. Endo came to Europe only at the age of 25, having gone to the Belgian Saint-Truiden. But he quickly went to Germany, specifically to Stuttgart. In addition, in the first season, Wataru fought with the team in the Second Bundesliga and on loan. Then there was a promotion and a rescue for a modest 1.7 million euros.
It is curious that the new Liverpool defender is a point guard in a completely different position. Endo started out in the center of defense and remained in this role for most of his career, until he moved to Germany. Already in Stuttgart, Wataru moved to midfield, and not immediately. Games as a defender, he currently spent even more than as a defensive midfielder. And this despite the growth he is far from outstanding – 178 cm.
One of Endo’s strengths is leadership. The Japanese captain wears the captain’s armband both in the national team and in Stuttgart before the transfer. Here, in the context of a move to Liverpool, there is a clear logic: the English need leaders after the departure of the captain and vice-captain in the person of Henderson and James Milner.
Endo in the Japanese team
Photo: Kenta Harada/Getty Images
Now about the gaming qualities. Endo vaguely resembles Jorginho Wijnaldum, one of Liverpool’s key players in the Jurgen Klopp era, who was clearly missing from the team after leaving PSG. Wataru is also good at taking down, works very well with his body and feels confident with the ball; he does not even hesitate to spin the roulette wheel of Marseille. Hence the ninth place in fouls won last season in the Bundesliga (55). It is difficult to pass Endo: he became the ninth in the championship in tackles when trying to dribble the opponent (38).
A nice advantage is connecting to the attack. Endo hits well from distance, even from the summer (if you look at the cuts you will see several goals in a similar style), he knows how to make subtle passes and recover the wall at the right time. With the promotion of the ball, everything is in order: last season, Wataru had 171 promotion passes in the Bundesliga; according to this indicator, he is the best in Stuttgart and the seventh in the entire championship. For a defensive midfielder, Endo has a great performance: 5+4 in the “goal + pass” system in the last league draw. This despite the fact that he did not score a penalty.
Another advantage of Endo is an iron body and a discipline characteristic of the Japanese. In his three years at Stuttgart, Wataru only missed two games due to health problems, one of them due to the coronavirus. And the last disqualification in connection with the bust in yellow occurred already in the 2020/2021 season. Last season, Endo simply did not have enough cards for this – only 3 in 33 matches.
What is embarrassing about the transfer of Endo. And some more features
The obvious downside of the deal for Liverpool is the cost. In recent years, the club has accustomed the fans to paying more for only the most necessary and strong players. And then often it was possible to agree on the most favorable conditions for them. Things are different with Wataru: for a 30-year-old player who only had one year left on his contract with Stuttgart and whom Transfermarkt estimates at a modest 6.5 million euros, Liverpool paid 19 million. go bankrupt on these deals, but this amount can only be explained by panic due to the circumstances and unwillingness to get involved in lengthy negotiations.
We analyze the phenomenon of Caicedo, who rejected Liverpool:
Chelsea’s and the Premier League’s most expensive player is having a breakout season in his career. What is the Caicedo phenomenon?
The other side of the transfer is the same Endo. Unlike Caicedo himself, Wataru immediately expressed his desire to join Liverpool. It is understandable: in this case, there was no competition with other major clubs. But for Liverpool, this aspect is still important: Klopp needs players who want 100% to play for his team and give themselves completely to the cause.
There is no doubt that Endo is going to Liverpool full of enthusiasm. A clear confirmation are the words of the head coach of Stuttgart, Sebastian Hoenes, at a press conference shortly before the deal was concluded.
Sebastian Hoenes
stuttgart head coach
“The club has given permission for Watar to negotiate with Liverpool. It is not normal for the captain to leave two days before the start of the season, but we see it as an incentive to have some successful games even without him. At Endo, we are losing an extremely reliable footballer and a leader both sportingly and personally. But Wataru had the opportunity to fulfill his dream at the age of 30 and play in the Premier League. It will be an honor for Stuttgart and everyone who has worked here with Endo to help him in this. I wish Wataru nothing but the best.”
And some more tokens related to Endo:
Attentive Liverpool fans immediately came up with a meme linking Wataru to Jordan Henderson. If you remove some letters from the ex-captain’s name on the jersey, you get the Endo name stained unevenly on the back. It is a pity that the Japanese took the third number and not 14; In Germany, Endo was so loved for his dedication and hard work that they came up with the nickname LegEndo; Endo is so tough that he sometimes plays with a cap. I’m not kidding.
Endos in Stuttgart
Photo: Alexander Hassenstein/Getty Images
In short, Liverpool bought a quality player for the rotation, albeit older and overpaid. Pretending that the defender’s position is closed is definitely not going to work. There is still a hole in the center of midfield, which urgently needs to be covered by a player who is fully in line with the level of the team. The good news for the fans is that the club, according to the latest news, is actively working in this direction. But if the defensive midfielder does not reach the base, Liverpool will have big problems.
Klopp has already started the season without a defensive midfielder. This is how it was:
Liverpool and Chelsea were left without winning. And Salah’s replacement will be remembered for a long time.
