Wataru Endo showed off his versatility and experience at Southampton, with the stats showcasing why he was deemed Liverpool’s Man of the Match.
Arne Slot mixed up his starting lineup on the south coast and while it may have been a mismatched outfit, it ended in the same result as Liverpool notched their 20th win of the campaign.
The Reds dominated the ball with 69 percent possession to limit the home side to just 228 accurate passes throughout the game, 343 fewer than Liverpool’s total.
Harvey Elliott picked up Sky Sports Man of the Match award, but statistically Endo was the leading man for Slot’s side – as evidenced by FotMob.
Endo can be trusted
It has been a difficult season for Endo having to predominantly watch the action from the bench, but he was priceless against Southampton at centre-back.
His versatility is a strength and it enabled him to push into midfield when Liverpool were on the ball.
Slot was full of praise post-match, saying: “Playing such a good game in these circumstances, that shows you what a quality player he is but maybe mainly what kind of mentality and personality he has.”
And the stats do not lie, with his 8-out-of-10 rating on FotMob the highest of any player.
No player won more duels (11/13) or tackles (4/4) than the Japan international, who notched a 100 percent success rate in ground duels (8/8).
He also didn’t let his 5’8″ frame stop him from winning an aerial duel against 6’7″ striker Paul Onuachu late in the match, one of three successes from five aerial attempts throughout the game.
Endo was tireless in his work and was fouled more times than anyone else (4) without ever committing one himself, an underrated quality.
He misplaced just six of his 85 attempted passes for an accuracy of 93 percent – when taking volume into account, it was bettered only by Jarell Quansah (96%).
The 31-year-old was the experienced head Liverpool needed across the 90 minutes and his impressive outing also saw him make two interceptions (joint-most of any Red), four recoveries (second-most of any Red) and two clearances.
Wataru Endo touches (101 in total) for Liverpool v Southampton. Attacking from right to left. ?? https://t.co/Hy5MMOvN8P pic.twitter.com/mLqnFfaRqy
— James Nalton (@JDNalton) December 19, 2024
Slot was eager to put Endo in the spotlight, explaining: “He was one of the main players why we could win this game and he deserves all the respect from me, from his teammates and also from the fans.”
That he does!
Wednesday’s match was the first 90 minutes Endo has completed this season and while it is unlikely he will make that a habit moving forward, he’s shown he can be relied upon a lot more than he has been so far.
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Southampton 1-2 Liverpool
