Wataru Endo Reflects on Eventful Start at Liverpool, Vows “More to Come”
It was an eventful end to the week for Wataru Endo, who signed with Liverpool on Friday and made his debut just over 24 hours later. And the Japan captain is already looking forward to more, taking to Instagram after his debut to pledge there was “more to come.”
Endo joined Dominik Szoboszlai in a makeshift midfield pairing, with Jurgen Klopp reverting to a 4-4-1 with 10 men – and the Hungarian shone. In only his second competitive appearance for Liverpool, and his first in any capacity at Anfield, Szoboszlai produced a match-winning display.
There were two ‘assists’ – winning the penalty for Mohamed Salah’s strike at 2-1 and forcing Neto to palm his shot into the path of Diogo Jota for 3-1 – in a relentless showing. And for the rest of the squad, including goalscorers Jota and Luis Diaz, the emphasis was on a positive start as Liverpool returned to Anfield.
Endo Joins Liverpool After Failure to Sign Other Targets
Signed on Friday, off the bench on Saturday – it was a busy end to the week for Endo. The Japan captain may not have even expected to be joining Liverpool when the week began, as the failure to sign other targets led to a £16 million deal with Stuttgart.
Player and manager are both delighted to have linked up, though, and just over 24 hours after completing his switch, Endo made his debut. It came amid frustrating circumstances as he replaced Cody Gakpo following Alexis Mac Allister’s red card, but ended in victory as Liverpool beat Bournemouth 3-1.
Szoboszlai Relishes Anfield Debut
“This is how we start at home!” was the new No. 8’s verdict after his match-winning performance. Szoboszlai relished his Anfield debut and took to Instagram to share his joy.
And if there were any concerns after Darwin Nunez headed straight down the tunnel at full-time, the striker appears to still be in strong spirits. Next up for Liverpool is a trip to upwardly mobile Newcastle on August 27, with Endo in line to make his full debut if Mac Allister is banned.
Conclusion
It was an eventful end to the week for Wataru Endo, who joined Liverpool on Friday and made his debut just over 24 hours later. Endo and Dominik Szoboszlai both shone in a makeshift midfield pairing, with Szoboszlai producing a match-winning performance. The new arrivals are already looking forward to more, with Endo vowing “more to come” and Szoboszlai relishing his Anfield debut.