Humphrey Ker, Wrexham’s executive director, expressed interest in signing Wataru Endo for the League One newcomers, suggesting that the Japanese midfielder’s transfer to Liverpool for £16 million in the summer was a telling example of the unpredictability in today’s football transfer market. Endo joined Liverpool after the Reds missed out on their initial targets, Moises Caicedo and Romeo Lavia.
Liverpool initially planned to bring in Romeo Lavia from Southampton and Moisés Caicedo from Brighton & Hove Albion to replace Jordan Henderson and Fabinho, who both departed to join the Saudi Pro League. However, Liverpool’s plans changed, and they ended up signing Wataru Endo to strengthen their midfield.
Wataru Endo, the Japanese international, had a slow start at Liverpool, finding it difficult to make a significant impact initially. However, he has since become an important player for the Reds in 2024. A standout moment was his impressive performance during Liverpool’s League Cup victory over Chelsea at Wembley in February, where he played a crucial role in the team’s success.
As a result of a stellar debut season at Anfield, Ker has admitted he’d love to sign Endo for Wrexham, owned by Hollywood duo Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney. Wrexham recently secured a return to League One for the first time since 2005 by finishing as runners-up in League Two.
“In terms of who’s one of my favourite players and who would I love to see playing in a Wrexham shirt? At present, I’ve got a real soft spot for Wataru Endo,” Ker told SportBible. “Who is kind of a perfect encapsulation of the fury in the summer when Liverpool missed out on Caicedo and Lavia and it was all doom and gloom and disaster.
“And then they sign Wataru Endo and it was like ‘well, who’s this guy? I’ve never heard of him’ he was only 16 million quid, what are they playing at? And then he’s been one of the signings of the season.”
I think there’s a good lesson there for all of us in terms of, you know, the glitz and the glamour and the big price tags and ‘what are Liverpool doing not spending 100 million on a central midfielder’.
