‘All over the place’… £16m Liverpool player ran further than any of his teammates vs Burnley

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Liverpool have found their ‘new James Milner’ after Tuesday’s win over Burnley.

Milner left Anfield in the summer, putting an end to eight superb years at Liverpool. The 37-year-old has been missed for many things ever since, but perhaps one of his most underrated attributes was his ability to cover huge amounts of ground during games.

According to former Reds striker Neil Mellor though, Jurgen Klopp may now have found Milner’s successor in that respect.

Analysing Liverpool’s 2-0 win over Burnley for LFCTV this week, Mellor suggested that Wataru Endo is now the man covering every blade of grass for the Reds.

“The manager’s really pleased with him and the fans are as well,” said the pundit. “Good run in the team from Endo.

“Some people have likened him to Milner because he is the person who covers the most ground. It was 11.7 [kilometres] for this game, by far the most of the whole team. Similar sort of numbers against Arsenal. He’s all over the place. In the opposition half as well, he’s right, he’s left, he’s central. Absolutely all over the place. He’s fit, getting about and giving Liverpool good balance.”

Endo puts himself about

One of the biggest criticisms of Liverpool’s midfield last season was that they simply lacked physicality.

Between the three of them, Jordan Henderson, Fabinho and Thiago Alcantara just couldn’t seem to fill the areas they needed to.

Milner was still about of course, and added plenty of athleticism when he was on the pitch. But at 37, it was no longer as easy for the veteran to plug all of the gaps.

It’s true that Endo is no spring chicken at 30. But so far, the Japan captain has shown that he has no trouble getting himself up, down and across the pitch. It really was a superb performance against Burnley.

With the way Liverpool play, it’s so important to have a holding midfielder who can provide this running ability.

But it isn’t just about running blindly wherever the ball may be. Endo has to think about when to move forward, when to drop back and when to help out the wide men.

As time has progressed, the £16m signing has learnt exactly when to do those things. Having struggled initially, Endo is now as effective a defensive midfielder as Liverpool could wish for.

With the Asian Cup on the horizon, Wata’s run in the Reds XI is set to end relatively soon. When he’s gone, Liverpool will certainly miss his relentless running.