11 months ago
153 Craig Burley criticised Wataru Endo after his performance for Liverpool in their dramatic win over Crystal Palace, and fears that the summer signing is just not getting up to the pace of the Premier League.
Burley was speaking on ESPN after the Reds claimed a late win which actually sent Jurgen Klopp’s side to the top of the table.
It was little surprise when Klopp took Endo off at half-time at Selhurst Park. The Japan international kept his place in the starting lineup after the win over Sheffield United in the week.
Wataru Endo struggles in Liverpool win
Unfortunately, he found the going very difficult against the Eagles. Will Hughes, in particular, did not want to give the 30-year-old a second of free time on the ball.
One of those moments led to Crystal Palace being awarded a penalty. Thankfully for Endo, the VAR deemed that he had actually been fouled in the build-up and the decision was overturned.
As Burley notes, it was definitely a foul. In fact, it was surprising that the referee needed to look at the incident so many times before changing his mind. However, there is no question that Endo had a very tough day at the office.
And the pundit believes that his form is a worry for Klopp.
“He’s made five subs, Klopp, before the 75th minute. Before the sending off, he’s already made the five subs because he knows he’s struggling. And when Szoboszlai’s quiet and hardly mentioned, you think well they’re struggling in the midfield,” he told ESPN.
“And Endo is just not getting up to pace with the Premier League. He’s getting caught on the ball, he caught on the ball for the goal that was chalked off. It was a foul. But he just looked sort of weak in there.”
Reds still looking for world-class holding midfielder
Wataru Endo would not have been the holding midfielder anyone would have expected Liverpool to sign in the summer.
Right now, it does feel that they are waiting for the opportunity for a world-class option in that position to become available at a price they are happy with.
In fairness, it is hard to complain about the £16 million deal to sign Endo. He is clearly a very decent player with almost 100 Bundesliga appearances under his belt before his move.
But Liverpool are back amongst the title contenders. They have not been perfect. But they have a real chance this season. And with that, the standards are a lot higher than many would have anticipated.
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