On September 3, UEFA published the squad list for the 2026-27 Champions League league phase, and it turned out that Liverpool’s Wataru Endo, a former Japan national team midfielder, had been left off it. Endo hasn’t had a single appearance in the Premier League this season either, having been named among the substitutes just twice. Reactions on 5channel were split — some questioned why Endo, who has already retired from the national team, didn’t transfer over the summer (“He should’ve just moved clubs”), others compared his playing style to that of Kaishu Sano, while still others offered calmer assessments that factored in his injury and fitness.
Soccer King
9/4
UEFA (the Union of European Football Associations) published the squad lists for each club competing in the 2026-27 Champions League (CL) league phase on the 3rd. Liverpool’s former Japan national team midfielder Wataru Endo was left off that list.
Source: soccer-king.jp / Original article here
I get why he was clinging to Liverpool up until now — he needed to for World Cup selection — but now that he's declared his international retirement, I figured he'd surely transfer this summer.
Even a loan would be fine, he should just go somewhere he can actually play.
He's not exactly at an age where he still needs to play to keep developing.
Once you give up on the national team too, I guess not playing becomes okay with you.
they've all fallen off, huh
In the end only Naoya Inoue is still standing
Hiroki Ito is pretty far down the pecking order at Bayern too —
he hasn't played in cup games either, so he's probably like the 5th-choice center-back.
Meanwhile Kim Min-jae is an undisputed starter at Bayern,
and Lee Kang-in transferred to Atletico and is their ace.
no matter what anyone says, unless he really goes off the rails, his life is already a certified success
He really should've left when Klopp's tenure ended.
He should've left in the winter two seasons ago, when the managerial change clearly shifted how he was used.
No matter how good a player is, some managers just won't use them — that happens all the time, it's not Endo's fault.
Turns out Endo's the type who's satisfied just being at a big club, even without playing.
Re: #24
Destinations like Turkey haven't closed their windows yet.
It's a standoff — the club wants him out, Endo's refusing to go.
no club's signing a player like that.
If anyone wants Endo, the winter window will do just fine.
Still probably far from 100%, though
If he could carry it forward with a dribble or thread a through ball like Sano does, it'd create chances,
but instead he just passes to the nearest teammate and that's it.
Every single time.
Sano's a meathead whose positioning is a mess,
and he can't control the back line either.
Endo's better and smarter at that stuff.
Carrying the ball and passing is a job for the No. 8 next to him anyway.
As a No. 6, Endo's better than Sano.
Sano's market value — and the actual offers he's gotten — are higher than Endo's, though
Sano ended up with zero offers, lol.
Sure, just being in the Bundesliga around age 25 inflates that made-up 'market value' number easily,
but that doesn't mean he'll actually sell for that price, and it has nothing to do with real ability.
Kamada was briefly the most expensive Japanese player around that same age too,
but in the end nobody bought him, he kept doing free transfers,
and now his market value has cratered.
It's fine, Sano's in the Bundesliga, isn't he.
Mainz isn't weak either.
He can grind out one more year and then do a cheap free transfer.
Sano didn't get zero offers —
that's a fact, reported by Kicker, Bild, Sky, and the BBC.
Market value does correlate with ability.
Kamada actually holds the highest salary of any Japanese player ever, he's a title collector,
and he's the only one holding down a real regular starting spot in a Premier League full of high-value heavyweights.
The Kamada-Wharton midfield pairing is rock solid.
The Nippon Foundation is a sponsor too
It's not really a position —
he was playing a role in soccer similar to a closer/relief pitcher in baseball
He's not young anymore, so maybe around 300 million yen
Our defensive midfielders are Shibasaki and Misao.
Bueno hasn't quite clicked the way he did at Shimizu yet, but J.League defensive midfielders are probably around Endo's age anyway.
Endo could still do plenty in the J.League too
Total opposite mentality from Endo
Seriously?…
Minamino was the team's top scorer in both the League Cup and the FA Cup, the key figure behind winning that domestic double.
He contributed a ton.
He's way too hard on himself.
Background and Talking Points
The Champions League league-phase squad list is a roster each club submits in advance; being left off it doesn’t prevent a player from featuring in domestic league matches or remaining at the club, and there’s also a system for swapping registered players during the winter transfer window. On the thread, some reactions were dismissive — “who cares” — given that Endo has already retired from the national team, while others pointedly questioned why he didn’t transfer over the summer, since although the major leagues’ transfer windows had closed by early September, some leagues, such as Turkey’s, were still open. Opinions on his playing style split between criticism that he lacks the ability to carry the ball forward and views that credit his contribution in a defensive role, and there was also disagreement over how his limited playing time due to injury would affect his standing in the transfer market.
*This article is compiled as excerpts and a summary of the 5channel (Geinou/Sports News Plus) thread “[Soccer/European CL] Liverpool’s Wataru Endo left off Champions League league-phase squad list… benched twice in the Premier League this season but still hasn’t played.”
