Liverpool have made a surprise bid for Japan international Wataru Endo, which will see his club receive about £16 million in exchange for the player as Jurgen Klopp remains keen on getting an experienced holding midfielder.
The 30-year-old Stuttgart midfielder, who can also play in the center-back, is on his way to Merseyside to complete a spectacular transfer.
Liverpool fans haven’t had to wait long for concrete rumours about the club’s search for a new midfielder. It comes after Liverpool’s failed bids to sign Moises Caiceido and Romeo Lavia.
Jorg Schmadtke, the director of Liverpool, made a “surprising move,” according to Romano.
Meanwhile, Endo reportedly desired the move, viewing it as “the most important opportunity of his career.”
Soon later, Romano announced “here we go” on Endo to Liverpool.
According to Sky Sports. the Reds will sign him for a rumoured sum of £16 million, with personal terms settled in a “few hours.”
The golden Transfer rule broken by Liverpool for Wataru Endo
Going against the club’s well-established transfer market objective of selecting younger players to develop and raise in value, the Reds have completed a deal for a 30-year-old midfielder.
He has come to Merseyside to finalize the details of his contract with the English club and to undergo a medical, which is expected to take place on Thursday.
Although, the Japanese footballer is 30, but over the last four years, Wataru Endo has only missed 2 games. That too, one due to Coronavirus and the other due to a concussion.
If we can get this kind of consistency from a holding midfielder, the Reds will always have an option of his caliber available from the bench if not the starting XI.
This level of consistency was expected from Oxlade-Chamberlain and Naby Keita but both failed to deliver.
Thus, if the Merseyside club has broken their Transfer rule, it’s obvious the reason is totally logical.
Endo joined Stuttgart on loan in 2019, assisting the club in regaining promotion to the Bundesliga, and in his first season in the German top flight, he topped the league charts for most challenges, with nearly 500 in just 30 appearances.
Schmadtke has named him one of the Bundesliga’s most underappreciated players, citing his incredible figures for distance traveled, passing skills, and, crucially, challenges and interceptions, which rank in the top percentile in German football.
