Slot lauds Liverpool star’s mental resilience amid title race

The reason for this change is not down to the question of quality but due to the different tactical preferences. Slot wants his team to control the game more, reducing the directness in play which demands a defensive midfielder of a different profile.

Speaking in his pre-match press conference for Villa (via Liverpoolfc.com), Slot highlighted the mental resilience of Endo at Liverpool. He said:

“I think Wata has been really useful for us this season. It’s not always a matter of how many minutes you play, you can be very important in two minutes and less important in 90 minutes. What makes Wata special, in my opinion, is every time we have to rely on him – if it’s five, 10, 20 or 25 minutes – he shows up. That sounds much more simple than it is because if a player has hardly had a lot of playing time then to be mentally so strong that if the team needs you, you can bring your best performance in – that is not always easy. Because mostly you see players that don’t play a lot find it difficult to get their rhythm or their quality in the less playing time they get. The only thing is defending is always more easy than creating. So if a player who hasn’t played for a long time and he has to create something, it is always more difficult than defending. He’s been important for us and he will be important for us in the upcoming weeks as well.”

Liverpool fans voted Endo as the Carlsberg Player of the Match for his 20-minute cameo against Wolves. The award highlights the impact of the Japan captain at a dire moment when the Reds faced immense pressure.

There is a possibility of the same situation happening again as the Premier League is enjoying higher competitiveness than usual. Wolves are 17^th in the Premier League table yet they threatened the league leaders in their home turf. Similarly, Leicester City managed to restrict second-placed Arsenal for 80 minutes last weekend before their first goal.

As the season reaches its last phase, Liverpool needs players of Endo’s mental fortitude to win trophies. Liverpool cannot afford to make the mistakes that they made at the latter end of the last season, costing them trophies.