Liverpool have agreed on a deal that will bring Japanese midfielder Wataru Endo from Stuttgart on a long-term contract, subject to international clearance and work permit application, the Premier League club said Friday.
The 30-year-old Endo has played 50 matches for Japan, including all four of his country's World Cup games in Qatar late last year. He was named the national team's new captain in June.
Endo, who hails from Kanagawa Prefecture near Tokyo, moved from the J-League's Urawa Reds to Belgium's Sint-Truiden in 2018 and then to Stuttgart in 2019, where he became the German side's captain two years later.
"I'm very happy right now and I'm so excited to join a big club in Liverpool," Endo told Liverpoolfc.com.
"It feels amazing and this is my dream. It's always (been) a dream to play (in the) Premier League and with one of the biggest clubs in the world. It's a dream come true for me."
Japanese compatriot Takumi Minamino played for Liverpool between 2020 and 2022. Liverpool finished the 2022-23 season in fifth place.
