Arne Slot could sell £16m Liverpool player after he suffers poor pre-season

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Liverpool’s preparations for the 2024-25 Premier League campaign are going quite well after three wins from as many games in pre-season.

Arne Slot has imprinted his philosophy at the club and this is evident from Liverpool’s style of play as they secured morale-boosting wins against Real Betis, Arsenal and Manchester United in the USA.

The Dutchman has a full squad at his disposal currently barring Alisson Becker, who is yet to return from his holidays after representing Brazil at the Copa America. The likes of Trent Alexander-Arnold, Virgil van Dijk, Cody Gakpo and Alexis Mac Allister returned recently and could feature against Sevilla on August 11th as they continue to build their way up to full fitness.

While the likes of Fabio Carvalho and Trey Nyoni have made good impressions in pre-season, one player who hasn’t covered himself in too much glory is Wataru Endo.

Wataru Endo flatters to deceive in Liverpool pre-season

The Japanese midfielder has struggled to get to grips with Slot’s possession-based philosophy and Liverpool aren’t against parting ways with Endo despite rejecting a bid from Marseille earlier this summer.

A report from The Athletic states that Endo, who was signed for £16m last summer from VfB Stuttgart, was the subject of a £11.9m offer from the Ligue 1 side, which was swiftly turned down by Liverpool.

However, with the midfielder falling down the pecking order at the club under the new manager, the report suggests that Endo’s future at Anfield remains very much in doubt despite Liverpool lacking a specialist number six.

What does the future hold for Wataru Endo?

Endo’s signing came absolutely out of nowhere last summer after Liverpool were frustrated in their efforts to sign Moises Caicedo and Romeo Lavia, both of whom joined Chelsea.

To be fair to the Japan international, he fared quite well last season under Jurgen Klopp, making 43 appearances in all competitions as Liverpool finished third in the Premier League and won the Carabao Cup.

However, with Stefan Bajcetic back in the fray and Tyler Morton returning from an impressive loan spell at Hull City, Endo is unlikely to get nearly as much game time as he did last season. Additionally, he turns 32 next February and doesn’t really suit Slot’s system, making a potential departure the best solution for everyone involved.

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