Wataru Endo’s eyes light up as he contemplates what lies ahead in the Carabao Cup final.
“I’m so excited to play at Wembley,” he says. “I heard that 90,000 people will be there to watch. It will be my first time at such a special stadium. It would mean a lot to me to win my first title with this club.”
Liverpool’s late bloomer has exceeded all expectations since completing a surprise £16million ($20.2m) move to Anfield from Stuttgart last summer.
On Sunday, the Japan international will come face to face with the man who played a pivotal role in ensuring that, at the age of 30, he belatedly realised his Premier League dream.
If Moises Caicedo had been swayed by Liverpool’s advances after they had a club-record offer of £111m accepted by Brighton in August, chances are Endo would still be in the Bundesliga.
But Caicedo opted for Chelsea and, after Southampton’s Romeo Lavia did likewise in a £53m deal, Jurgen Klopp responded by turning to a holding midfielder he had admired for years.
Endo has impressed at Anfield (Paul Ellis/AFP via Getty Images)
The reaction among the wider fanbase to the identity of Fabinho’s replacement was initially underwhelming. With Liverpool’s options dwindling fast, some viewed Endo as a panic buy.
But, internally, senior Anfield figures never saw it that way. The data highlighted Endo as one of the Bundesliga’s best-performing midfielders in key metrics such as duel success, winning possession, tackles and attacking sequence involvements.
The character references obtained by interim sporting director Jorg Schmadtke were glowing. As well as his leadership and work ethic, Endo’s durability was viewed as a major plus given he had sat out just three league matches over the previous three seasons combined.
Liverpool pointed to the four-year contract they had given Endo as proof he wasn’t viewed as a short-term fix. Despite the ongoing speculation, there was never any chance of them recruiting another specialist No 6.
Six months on, how the tone has shifted. Chelsea’s celebrations over that expensive double triumph in the transfer market have long since fallen silent. They sit 25 points adrift of Klopp’s table-topping side.
For a seventh of the price of Caicedo, who has struggled to live up to his price tag, Endo has given Liverpool so much more bang for their buck. As for Lavia, he’s made just one substitute appearance for Chelsea in a campaign blighted by injury and remains sidelined.
Moises Caicedo has not made a big impression at Chelsea (Clive Brunskill/Getty Images)
“My god, were we lucky, eh?” said Klopp when speaking at the Anfield Road Stand test event in December. “We obviously realised that other central defensive midfielders don’t want to join Liverpool and then we found Endo.”
Some perceived it as a dig at Caicedo and Lavia, but Klopp was focusing on the good fortune of having such an effective backup plan after missing out on two targets.
Understandably, Endo needed some time to settle. There were four days between the call he received from his agent about Liverpool’s interest and his debut against Bournemouth. He didn’t have the luxury of a pre-season under Klopp.
The pace and physicality of the game required an adaptation period, as did the manager’s desire for his No 6 to operate higher up the field than Endo had been used to. He only started one league match before mid-November, with Alexis Mac Allister preferred in the holding role.
Shy and unassuming, Endo slowly came out of his shell around the training complex and grew in stature. Klopp and his staff have regularly reinforced to him that he belongs at this level.
Endo, who has four children, was snubbed by J1 League clubs as a youngster before playing in Japan’s second tier, then launching his career in Europe in the modest surroundings of Sint-Truiden in Belgium, and then going from benchwarmer to adored skipper at Stuttgart. He is no stranger to digging deep to prove people wrong.
He has clocked up 27 appearances (20 starts) for Liverpool in all competitions this season and that figure would be higher but for the seven matches he missed during his involvement at the Asian Cup in Qatar last month.
Endo’s Liverpool campaign was interrupted by the Asian Cup (Lintao Zhang/Getty Images)
His return to Klopp’s side has enabled Mac Allister to operate further forward, with Endo excelling as the defensive shield.
“It’s hard to play for Liverpool. There’s always a lot of pressure,” he says. “Playing in the Premier League is tough but this is something I wanted for a long time. I try to make sure I enjoy it and do my best every time.
“I’ve developed and improved over the season and that has helped to give me more confidence.”
His combative performances in this month’s wins over Brentford and Luton Town bode well for Wembley. Against Luton, he completed 50 of his 53 passes (94 per cent) and created three chances. He won possession on six occasions, with Virgil van Dijk (seven) the only Liverpool player to better that figure.
“We’ve lost a lot of players to injuries but the win against Luton showed that we still have good players available,” Endo adds. “We’re very much together as a team.
“The fans have been amazing to me since I arrived. The atmosphere was crazy in the second half against Luton.”
Endo was away on international duty when the news broke about Klopp’s decision to step down at the end of the season. He believes the manager’s impending farewell will continue to galvanise the dressing room.
“I was sad when I heard about it,” he says. “I really enjoy playing for him and playing football the way he plays. Others have been here a lot longer so maybe have more emotion but he has helped me so much.
“It’s disappointing but I want us to achieve titles for him before he goes. Winning at Wembley would give us extra energy.”
Having signed for Liverpool after the draw at Stamford Bridge on the opening weekend of the season and been in Qatar when Mauricio Pochettino’s side were hammered 4-1 at Anfield last month, Sunday will be the first time Endo has faced Chelsea.
He will be surrounded by an array of more expensive purchases at Wembley but he is proof that you do not have to pay sky-high prices to find the perfect solution to a problem.
(Top photo: Paul Ellis/AFP via Getty Images)
