"Outstanding in the middle of the park yesterday" - Micah Richards praises Liverpool star's performance in 1-1 Manchester City draw

Former England defender Micah Richards has hailed Wataru Endo following his spectacular performance for Liverpool in their 1-1 draw against Manchester City on Sunday, March 10.

Eyebrows were raised when Liverpool signed relatively unknown Endo in the summer after missing out on Moises Caicedo and Romeo Lavia to Chelsea. However, the Japan international took very little time to adjust to the Premier League and establish himself as a key player for Jurgen Klopp's side.

He has been exceptional following his £16 million switch from VfB Stuttgart and has looked like an absolute bargain. Endo has been excellent in the middle of the park, filling in the void left by Fabinho's departure. The 31-year-old caught the eye against Manchester City in the 1-1 draw at Anfield on Sunday.

Micah Richards has claimed that he didn't expect Endo the kind of impact he has had at Liverpool so far. The former Manchester City right-back said, as quoted by The Boot Room:

“Endo in midfield. Wow. When he came to Liverpool I was thinking ‘Ok, good experienced player’. But I didn’t think he could get to the levels of that in terms of the intensity of the game."

Richards added:

“I know the Bundesliga is back and forth but I thought he was outstanding in the middle of the park yesterday, he really was.”

Endo played 1 key pass and had 95.2% passing accuracy against Manchester City while having 72 touches of the ball. He also won four tackles and made two interceptions and two clearances.

He has so far made 32 appearances for the Reds scoring thrice and providing one assist this season.

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Pundit hails Liverpool youngster for keeping Erling Haaland silent

Former Middlesbrough midfielder turned television pundit Robbie Mustoe has lauded Liverpool youngster Jarell Quansah for his admirable performance against Manchester City. The 21-year-old paired up with Virgil van Dijk at the back and kept Erling Haaland silent as the Reds drew 1-1 against the Cityzens.

Mustoe insisted while many other Liverpool youngsters have earned rave reviews for their performances this season, Quansah's development has gone under the radar. He said:

“Even during and after – and maybe we’re guilty of that – not a lot of talk about Jarell Quansah. A lot of talk about Erling Haaland not getting a kick in the game. And as you said, there were a couple of moments where van Dijk stood out, the one on one defending with Haaland."

The former Middlesbrough midfielder added:

"But Quansah, and I remember Jurgen Klopp, the reporter asking questions about how proud he is of the young players and he mentioned Conor Bradley and maybe Elliott and a couple of the others. And Klopp said, what about Quansah? Nobody talks about Quansah. And I think he is sneaky blooming good."

Quansah is enjoying a phenomenal breakthrough season and looks like a top-class centre-back in the making. Labelled as 'Virgil 2.0', the defender has made 23 senior appearances this season and has caught the eye.