Wataru Endo - joins Liverpool

[Michael]

34 minutes ago, Dr. Gonzo said:

Shit if Keita’s better than him that’s truly bad news

To be fair, injuries hampered Keita's time at Liverpool. It was never going to be easy joining an elite club such as Liverpool and staking a regular place in the starting 11, let alone having his spell at Liverpool curtailed by injury problems. I think most people who have watched Keita at his best, will tell you that he is a very good player. At one point during his spell at Liverpool, Keita won two man of the match awards in a row in the EPL, he couldn't have been that bad of a player.

One thing you won't fault with Endo is his work-rate, he will no doubt give his all for Liverpool, just as he did for Stuttgart and the Japanese national team. But is he as talented or as good as the 3 former Liverpool players I mentioned, I personally don't think he is.

Edited August 18, 2023 by Michael

[Stan]

55 minutes ago, Danny said:

Hope he turns out to be a good signing tbh, hes currently the laughingstock of the league through no fault of his own.

I wouldn't say he is. More the transfer policy of the club that's hired him...

[Michael]

Klopp reacts to Endo signing: "A good deal for Stuttgart." (bulinews.com)

[Rick]

2 hours ago, Danny said:

Hope he turns out to be a good signing tbh, hes currently the laughingstock of the league through no fault of his own.

It’s a bit shit isn’t it, the reaction some dickheads are having. The lad jumped at the chance to come here, is captain for Japan and seems to be well regarded in Germany. I’m happy to have him through the door, but we do need more. 
 

Im okay with him being less technically gifted than the likes of Keita, who was all talent but no real substance. This guy sounds like Gini, and that will do us great. Get another midfielder in, and a centre half and I’ll relax. 

Edited August 18, 2023 by Rick

[Bluewolf]

He could end up being one of those low profile signings that ends up doing a really good job... If he views this as a chance of a lifetime then I am pretty sure he is going to give it his all no matter what people think of him.. Could turn out to be a gem.. 

Edited August 18, 2023 by Bluewolf

[Dr. Gonzo]

2 hours ago, Michael said:

To be fair, injuries hampered Keita's time at Liverpool. It was never going to be easy joining an elite club such as Liverpool and staking a regular place in the starting 11, let alone having his spell at Liverpool curtailed by injury problems. I think most people who have watched Keita at his best, will tell you that he is a very good player. At one point during his spell at Liverpool, Keita won two man of the match awards in a row in the EPL, he couldn't have been that bad of a player.

One thing you won't fault with Endo is his work-rate, he will no doubt give his all for Liverpool, just as he did for Stuttgart and the Japanese national team. But is he as talented or as good as the 3 former Liverpool players I mentioned, I personally don't think he is.

Keita, even when fit, was a very inconsistent player for us. He'd take time to get back into form, then get injured and have a lengthy layoff once he started looking good. He had some good moments with us, for sure, and in our league winning season he did put in some great performances. But he's also put in some performances for us that were absolutely abysmal. That one half he had against Real Madrid is up there with one of the worst ever performances I've seen from a Liverpool player in my life, Salif Diao would have been proud.

If he's better than Fabinho was for us last season (which was pretty poor in all honesty), then I think it'll be a good short-term signing for us. It's obviously a very underwhelming signing compared to some of the names we'd been linked with this summer: Bellingham, Thuram, Caciedo, and Lavia - all of whom are high profile and have much more of a potential higher ceiling than a guy in his 30s who's never played at a club this level.

From what I've heard from a lot of people is he's got a lot of the qualities we loved in Milner, so I'd think of him as more of a Milner replacement in the squad. I also think with his fee, we'll probably (hopefully) be looking to bring in another midfielder. I hope it's Doucoure, who I think is the perfect signing for us.

[Danny]

3 hours ago, Rick said:

It’s a bit shit isn’t it, the reaction some dickheads are having. The lad jumped at the chance to come here, is captain for Japan and seems to be well regarded in Germany. I’m happy to have him through the door, but we do need more. 
 

Im okay with him being less technically gifted than the likes of Keita, who was all talent but no real substance. This guy sounds like Gini, and that will do us great. Get another midfielder in, and a centre half and I’ll relax. 

I think with him, and this is based purely off of looking at his stats, he’ll be able to do a lot of the defensive work that Trent and Mac Allister had to do against Chelsea, in terms of your shape he might allow you to play that back 3 and let Trent drift around a bit. He might not be a star player but if he fits the system he might let a lot of other players shine.