As Liverpool commemorates their second Premier League title, observant supporters at Anfield have noted that a specific statistic regarding Wataru Endo this season distinguishes him from all other players in the league.
On Sunday, Arne Slot became the fifth manager in Premier League history to secure the title in their first season in England’s top division, following a commanding 5-1 victory over Tottenham Hotspur in front of an enthusiastic Anfield crowd.
Something of a forgotten figure under Slot, the seasoned Japan international, Endo, has played 29 times in 2024/25.
That said, many of his cameos have come from the bench, by virtue of the respective forms of Ryan Gravenberch and Alexis Mac Allister.
What the Japan national team skipper has always provided when relied upon is a work ethic – and that’s proved by a statistic that has recently come to light: his somewhat impressive tally of fouls per game, which has trumped every other player in the Premier League.
Endo joined the Merseysiders, who were then under Jurgen Klopp’s stewardship, with a gritty reputation of a player who enjoyed getting stuck in – and, when stripping his move back to its bare bones, that’s exactly what he has supplied in his short stay at Anfield thus far.
Of all the players in England’s primary division this season, there is no one (Crystal Palace’s Will Hughes is just behind) that has committed more fouls per game than the 32-year-old, who joined from VfB Stuttgart in the summer of 2023.
Per game, Endo – who has become popular for wearing a rugby-like gumshield during matches – has chalked up eight fouls this term.
What’s more notable is that he’s managed to go the entirety of the Premier League 2024/25 season without receiving a yellow card.