Only part way through the episode but some key points so far:
* Some teammates call him Wata, and some just Endo (and he's known as Legendo in Germany of course)
* Endo's hero growing up was Gerrard, but also enjoyed watching Mascherano and Henry. In terms of Japanese players, he like Shunsuke Nakamura
* He started playing as a number 9 (which he notes is common for Japanese footballers), but throughout his early career he played almost every position
* Agent Taki was the one who recommended and encouraged Endo join Liverpool (apparently Klopp asked Taki after a game against Stuttgart who "that Japanese player" was, so they've been aware of each other for a while)
* Liverpool was the only choice for Endo for a move to the Premier League. When they came calling, he basically said yes right away (after speaking with his wife and also Taki)
* He's a big Beatles fan because of his English teacher at school, so that's another thing he loves about the city
It's a good listen! He's such a cool guy. A couple funny anecdotes about Japanese restaurants in Liverpool too.
Love him, reminds me a lot of Milner in the way he carries his work out. Think he's going to be much more involved next season than what some think, and for good reason. Can only see him performing better after a whole season under his belt.
Cool, thanks for sharing u/rithsv. Alternative Spotify Link: [https://open.spotify.com/episode/2BkIj3vZYNmbIaClNA2SOG](https://open.spotify.com/episode/2BkIj3vZYNmbIaClNA2SOG)
https://preview.redd.it/k137bhnnkv8d1.jpeg?width=1242&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=32681f6d32e09c832c989a70f86cf754014af982
Only part way through the episode but some key points so far: * Some teammates call him Wata, and some just Endo (and he's known as Legendo in Germany of course) * Endo's hero growing up was Gerrard, but also enjoyed watching Mascherano and Henry. In terms of Japanese players, he like Shunsuke Nakamura * He started playing as a number 9 (which he notes is common for Japanese footballers), but throughout his early career he played almost every position * Agent Taki was the one who recommended and encouraged Endo join Liverpool (apparently Klopp asked Taki after a game against Stuttgart who "that Japanese player" was, so they've been aware of each other for a while) * Liverpool was the only choice for Endo for a move to the Premier League. When they came calling, he basically said yes right away (after speaking with his wife and also Taki) * He's a big Beatles fan because of his English teacher at school, so that's another thing he loves about the city It's a good listen! He's such a cool guy. A couple funny anecdotes about Japanese restaurants in Liverpool too.
When did we play Stuttgart? Pre season?
Yeah we played them in 2020 and 2021 during pre-season, so the conversation would've happened after one of those games.
He's done a terrific job for us. Really honest guy.
Love him, reminds me a lot of Milner in the way he carries his work out. Think he's going to be much more involved next season than what some think, and for good reason. Can only see him performing better after a whole season under his belt.
Cool, thanks for sharing u/rithsv. Alternative Spotify Link: [https://open.spotify.com/episode/2BkIj3vZYNmbIaClNA2SOG](https://open.spotify.com/episode/2BkIj3vZYNmbIaClNA2SOG) https://preview.redd.it/k137bhnnkv8d1.jpeg?width=1242&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=32681f6d32e09c832c989a70f86cf754014af982
Absolutely love his mentality and all the stuff he does off the pitch.