Ex-Liverpool star claims Jurgen Klopp "doesn't trust" recent summer signing
Jurgen Klopp does not yet trust Wataru Endo to start in Premier League matches for Liverpool, according to Steve Nicol.
Liverpool paid £16.2million to sign Endo from Stuttgart on a four-year contract in the summer transfer window. He followed Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai into the club after the Reds failed to sign Moises Caicedo and Romeo Lavia, who both joined Chelsea.
Endo was somewhat of a surprise signing by Liverpool, with the 30-year-old Japan international’s move coming out of the blue. He has helped replenish stocks in the middle of the park after James Milner, Naby Keita, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Jordan Henderson and Fabinho all left, but is yet to make much of an impact.
He scored his first Liverpool goal in the 5-1 win over Toulouse in the Europa League on Thursday night, which was more notable for Ryan Gravenberch’s performance. Endo was dropped back to the bench for the Premier League game against Nottingham Forest on Sunday and has now started just one of their 10 league matches this season.
Nicol spent 13 years playing for Liverpool and believes Klopp is taking his time to let Endo acclimate at his new club. “The thing is he can afford to have Mac Allister a little deeper because they are pretty good still at going forward,” he said on ESPN. “But I don’t think he trusts Endo, I think that’s probably a better word. He doesn’t trust him yet to start him and have the other two further up.”
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Speaking after Liverpool's 3-1 win over West Ham in September, Klopp insisted Endo was “super important” to the team. He said: "He needs to get used to the things here. Wataru is a super guy, very calm and very polite and that cost him the first two weeks, maybe. That's now getting there. He is not 30 or whatever and wants to get some people out of the way to get into the team, but he is improving every day.
Wataru Endo hasn't featured much at Liverpool yet (Robbie Jay Barratt/Getty Images) HAVE YOUR SAY! What have you made of Wataru Endo's start at Liverpool? Comment below.
"You saw that today, he is there, he will help us a lot, he will play games, he will start games and all these kinds of things. It's all good, he had already three or four games now for us in a very short period. That is what counts, it is not a short-term project. Wataru is a super important part of the squad and I am really happy to have him."
Endo’s only start in the Premier League came in the 2-1 comeback win over Newcastle in August and he has been an unused substitute in the past two games against Brighton and Everton, with fellow summer signings Szoboszlai and Gravenberch starting ahead of him. He has started three Europa League ties and once in the League Cup so far, but will have to remain patient for opportunities in bigger games.
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