Are Liverpool getting the most out of Wataru Endo?

Over the summer, Liverpool made a handful of major additions to their midfield. Big names like Alexis Mac Allister, Dominik Szoboszlai and Ryan Gravenberch joined the Reds ranks. However, Wataru Endo was the least heralded midfield signing. A few months on, I look at if the club is getting the most out of Wataru.

He arrived for a paltry €18 million from Stuttgart in a surprise move that nobody saw coming.

His signing came after the fiasco and embarrassment from being publicly rejected by Moises Caicedo and Romeo Lavia.

It was clear the club wanted to make a move they knew would not fall through and that was Wataru. His advanced age fell outside the normal transfer profile utilized at Anfield. But he brought loads of experience including at the national team level.

It’s no secret Liverpool have been desperate for a defensive midfielder to hold the fort down following the departures of Fabinho and Jordan Henderson.

However, more often than not, Jurgen Klopp has opted to play Alexis Mac Allister in the No. 6 holding role instead. It’s clear that is a foreign spot to him but Klopp wants him on the field.

While that does not get the most out of Macca’s game, it allows him to play alongside Gravenberch and Szoboszlai.

That has left Endo waiting on the bench for the majority of his appearances. He struggled with the physicality of the Premier League during his first few cameos, but you can see his competitive nature and aggressive style eventually took over.

He is not afraid to snap into multiple tackles in one sequence and that is something that the Liverpool midfield needs on occasion.

This is especially true against lesser teams trying to sit back and hit the Reds on a counter. A player like Endo has the ability to break those up with authority.

He’s had a few good performances, particularly in the Cup competitions, but overall he is playing in a role one would expect a player of his minimal cost would be in.

Nothing he does is flashy and he is a bit lose when in possession, but if he were to be given a run of consistent appearances I’m sure we could see him get the most from his all-around game. Right now it feels like we are getting small doses of what makes him the Japan Captain.

Unfortunately for him, there will be limited options for him to get a hold of a starting spot as there is no four-man midfield at Liverpool.

If Wataru Endo can make the most of being used as a super-sub and spot starter, both the player and club will be all the better for it.