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“30-year-old Liverpool player is never going to be right for Jurgen Klopp”

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12 months ago

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Liverpool midfielder Wataru Endo has split plenty of opinion ever since signing for the Reds in August.

Despite some initial reservations about the wisdom of bringing in the 30-year-old, Endo has recently proven a few of his doubters wrong.

That culminated in an excellent display this mid-week against Burnley. Having ran the show in the Liverpool midfield, Endo covered every blade of grass.

But despite his pleasing turnaround in form, the Japan international still hasn’t convinced everybody. Speaking on The 2 Robbie’s Podcast today, former Wimbledon player Robbie Earle has claimed that he’s not sure Endo will ever be the ‘right’ midfielder for Liverpool.

“Do you know what I thought and he does get caught out once or twice with the game being quick, but I thought Endo is starting to show me a little bit more in midfield,” began the pundit.

“I’m not sure he’s ever going to be [right]. But at least I think he’s getting reps and he’s got half a season under his belt and I think he’s going to be better for that.”

Endo still facing uphill battle

For the time being, this is probably the dominant line of thinking surrounding Endo.

Yes, he’s been doing very well recently and is certainly making a lot of people eat their words. But in the long-term, it still feels like Liverpool need an upgrade.

If the former Stuttgart man were four or five years younger, then perhaps those conversations would be a little different.

Endo has certainly shown that he’s capable of being a starter for Liverpool and also appears to be getting better and better.

 

However, at 30, he does still have the feeling of being a placeholder at Anfield.

That might be unfair, and who knows what Jurgen Klopp is really thinking. Liverpool handed Endo a four-year deal when signing him this summer, so he’s here to stay.

Nevertheless, unless the Japanese suddenly becomes prime N’Golo Kante for the rest of the season, the feeling will continue that the Reds need a younger, top class model.

That’s for the future, though. For the time being Endo is enjoying his football and we’re enjoying watching him. He may not be the right man for the next five years but for the here and now, he’s doing just fine.

Liverpool are interested in the possibility of signing Benfica midfielder Joao Neves.

Neves has been a breakout star in Lisbon over the past year or so, leading to suggestions that Liverpool have sent scouts to see him in action.

As ever with talents emerging from Benfica, there’s supposedly already a queue of interested parties. And according to O Jogo, the Portuguese giants are expecting bids to arrive for the 19-year-old over time.

As a result, Benfica are reportedly in negotiations with Neves to extend his contract at the Estadio da Luz. Never ones to be bullied into selling their stars, the Eagles are said to be looking to insert a £130m release clause into the youngster’s contract.

This is claimed to be in an attempt to put any interested clubs off making an offer for the time being. Benfica reportedly plan on keeping Neves for another season, and will only sell him for the full value of the release clause.

Nevertheless, officials at the club are said to believe that bids may come in anyway. Manchester United are claimed to be ‘at the top of the grid’ for the Portugal international, but Liverpool are one of four other clubs reportedly ‘close behind.’

Liverpool looking at Neves

From our point of view, there’s not really much chance of Liverpool taking their interest in Neves any further.

If Benfica do manage to seal a new deal with the youngster – complete with £130m release clause – we’d say it can be ruled out completely.

As they showed in their negotiations with Chelsea for Enzo Fernandez last year, the Primeira Liga side will not bow to pressure from ‘bigger’ clubs.

If they demand that the release clause needs to be paid, then that’s likely what will end up happening.

Enzo’s transfer very much set the precedent in that regard, so we expect it’ll go the same way with Neves.

With that in mind, there’s absolutely no chance that Liverpool shell out £130m on a player with less than 50 senior appearances to his name.

Neves looks like a super little player, as you might expect. But he’s also a little on the small side for us.

With competition from clubs who will have no problem spending such huge sums, Liverpool shouldn’t be considered a front-runner here. It seems inevitable that Neves will end up leaving Benfica, but unless his price drops remarkably, a bid surely won’t arrive from Anfield.

 

 

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According to Robbie Earle, a 30-year-old Liverpool player will never be a good fit for Jurgen Klopp.

Wataru Endo, a midfielder for Liverpool, has divided a lot of opinions since joining the team in August.

Even though some people first questioned whether it was a good idea to bring in the 30-year-old, Endo has recently shown those people wrong.

This culminated in a fantastic performance against Burnley this midweek. After taking charge of the Liverpool midfield, Endo mowed down every grass blade.

However, even with his encouraging return to form, the Japan international hasn’t won over everyone. Robbie Earle, a former Wimbledon player, stated on The 2 Robbie’s Podcast today that he doesn’t think Endo will ever be the “right” midfielder for Liverpool.

“I thought Endo was starting to show me a little bit more in midfield, and he does get caught out once or twice because the game is quick,” the pundit said.

 

“I doubt he will ever be [correct].” However, I believe he is receiving reps and has experienced half of the season, and as a result, I believe he will improve.

Endo continues to face challenges.

This is most likely the prevalent way of thinking about endo at the moment.

Yes, he has been performing really well lately and is undoubtedly making a lot of people regret what they said. Long-term, though, it still seems like Liverpool needs an improvement.

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