It has not been easy to break into Arne Slot’s Liverpool team this season.
The Reds have gone beyond the expectations for them at the start of the campaign with the Merseyside club currently sitting top of the Premier League after 22 matches, six points ahead of second-place Arsenal.
| Position | Team | Played MP | Won W | Drawn D | Lost L | For GF | Against GA | Diff GD | Points Pts |
| 1 |  LiverpoolLiverpool | 22 | 16 | 5 | 1 | 54 | 21 | 33 | 53 |
| 2 |  ArsenalArsenal | 23 | 13 | 8 | 2 | 44 | 21 | 23 | 47 |
| 3 |  Nottm ForestNottingham Forest | 23 | 13 | 5 | 5 | 33 | 27 | 6 | 44 |
| 4 |  Man CityManchester City | 23 | 12 | 5 | 6 | 47 | 30 | 17 | 41 |
Slot’s men have also booked their place in the Last 16 of the Champions League while remaining in both domestic cup competitions.
Quadruple talk is starting to appear around Liverpool once again and it has been achieved without a huge amount of rotation.
If every player is fit, it is easy to guess the Reds starting 11 each week as Slot knows what his best team looks like.
That is always great for a club and the fans, however, for fringe players it can be a little difficult as breaking into the starting 11 becomes a hard task.
That is certainly the case for one star at the Premier League leaders and Liverpool’s Champions League clash with PSV Eindhoven on Wednesday could be his time to shine.
Arne Slot should reward Wataru Endo with PSV start
Slot brought Wataru Endo on for 22 minutes on Saturday as Liverpool defeated Ipswich Town 4-1. The Japanese star was not a standout that late in the game but his appearance was memorable after being on the wrong end of a nasty challenge with Julio Enciso.
Slot praised Endo’s mentality after the Ipswich match, with the Dutch coach describing it as “unbelievable”
“I was like, let’s wait and see, but immediately during the game already he shakes his head one or two times and just goes again,” the Liverpool boss said.
“His mentality is unbelievable – and he was fine. It was only a yellow so I assume that the fear I had was not realistic because it was only a yellow.”
Slot was keen to ship Endo out after being unconvinced by what he’d seen from the midfielder in pre-season, but the 31-year-old has slowly worked his way back into the Dutch coach’s plans.
The Japan international has featured 17 times for Liverpool this season, however, he has only racked up 482 minutes of action and has yet to start in the Premier League or Champions League.
Given his attitude and recent displays from the bench, Endo deserves to start against PSV on Wednesday as the contest is a match the Premier League leaders can afford to rest some of their big stars for as they only need a draw in the Netherlands.
Where could Arne Slot start Wataru Endo against PSV?
Having played 2574 minutes for Liverpool this season, it is clear that Ryan Gravenberch needs a rest against PSV and that is the obvious place for Slot to give Endo a start as it is his natural position.
However, it might be useful to use the 31-year-old at centre-back again. The Japanese star played alongside Jarell Quansah at the heart of the Reds’ defence during their FA Cup win over Accrington Stanley at the start of the month and performed admirably.
Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konate both need rest, especially with Joe Gomez out injured; therefore, Endo would allow Slot the chance to do this ahead of a tough trip to Bournemouth on Saturday.
Alexis Mac Allister could fill in for Gravenberch as the Argentina star would provide Slot with some experience in midfield and was recently rested for Liverpool’s match with Lille.
Endo will likely depart Anfield this summer but with his attitude being so admirable, the 31-year-old is a player the Reds should take advantage of while he remains on Merseyside.
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