Liverpool began the new season knowing that their attacking department needed to look very different from the one that struggled for consistency last year.
The Reds had already moved to address that during the summer transfer window, bringing in several new faces as Gareth Taylor looked to put his own stamp on the squad.
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One of the biggest areas of focus was the forward line, where Liverpool needed greater competition, creativity and, above all, more goals.
That made Sunday’s Women’s Super League opener against newly-promoted Charlton Athletic an important early test.
Liverpool had failed to win any of their first 13 league matches last season, making a fast start to the new campaign particularly significant.
At The Valley, Taylor’s side delivered exactly that, producing a dominant 4-0 victory in front of 2,151 supporters.
The performance was as convincing as the scoreline suggested.
Liverpool enjoyed 75.9 per cent possession, registered 15 shots to Charlton’s two and prevented the hosts from recording a single effort on target.
The Reds also created 10 chances, completed 636 accurate passes at an 89.1 per cent success rate and won nine corners.
Grace Fisk opened the scoring after eight minutes before doubling her tally shortly after the break.
Then came another major moment from Liverpool’s summer rebuild.
The 25-year-old Germany international had already shown encouraging signs during pre-season, but Charlton marked her first official appearance in the famous red shirt following her summer move from VfL Wolfsburg.
Vivien Endemann played a key role in Fisk’s second goal, cutting the ball back for the Liverpool captain to curl home from the edge of the area.
Just minutes later, the new No.9 got her own reward.
Endemann fired a clinical effort in at the near post to make it 3-0 and effectively put the result beyond Charlton’s reach.
Cornelia Kapocs added a stoppage-time penalty to complete the rout.
The goal represents an encouraging start to life in England for a forward who arrived with an impressive record.
Endemann spent three seasons at Wolfsburg and scored 31 goals for the German giants, while also gaining significant Women’s Champions League experience.
She won the German Cup in 2023-24 and made her senior Germany debut in 2024 before winning an Olympic bronze medal in Paris that same year.
Liverpool agreed to sign Endemann when her Wolfsburg contract expired, with the forward officially joining the club on July 1.
She had previously said she was ready for a new challenge and selected the No.9 shirt for her move to Merseyside.
Sunday’s result will not define Liverpool’s season.
But after last year’s difficult start, a four-goal victory, a dominant performance and a debut goal from one of the club’s key summer signings represents a promising first step.
For Endemann, it could hardly have been a better introduction to competitive football in a Liverpool shirt.
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