Liverpool have suffered another injury, with Wataru Endo the latest player to be struck down, and journalist Paul Gorst has provided an update on it.
The Reds sealed a vital and impressive 1-0 win away to Sunderland in the Premier League on Wednesday evening, with Virgil van Dijk scoring the only goal of the game with a header after the break.
It felt big in the battle for Champions League football, with Liverpool head coach Arne Slot speaking positively about the result after the game, coming in difficult conditions:
“I think we played really, really, really well again. We didn’t face the weather, we faced Sunderland, who were until tonight unbeaten at home. They are a good team, [have a] good manager and [have a] difficult playing style to play against because, as we know from the game we played at home against them, it’s a lot of long balls you have to defend and a lot of balls into the channels. I think we did that really well.”
Endo’s injury was the one big negative on the night, however, with the veteran stretchered off in the second half, and the reliable Gorst has taken to X to say: “Looks like a serious one for the Japan captain, who will be assessed on Thursday.”
A cruel blow for a brilliant squad player
Liverpool simply cannot catch a break when it comes to right-back options this season, with Jeremie Frimpong and Conor Bradley both missing the win over Sunderland, and even Dominik Szoboszlai suspended.
Endo was doing such a solid job there before his injury, and it is a cruel blow for him to suffer such a serious issue on a night when he was given rare minutes to shine.
This is clearly a blow for Liverpool, but for the player himself, there will now be genuine concern that he could miss the 2026 World Cup, where he is set to captain Japan.
That would be heartbreaking for the likeable midfielder, and the hope is that the scan isn’t as bad as many are fearing it will be, and that he will still feature again for club and country this season.