Slot selected Wataru Endo as one of his central defenders against Southampton, and the Japanese international had a superb performance.
Liverpool coach Arne Slot has praised Wataru Endo for his performance in Liverpool’s Carabao Cup win over Southampton on Wednesday.
The Reds came closer to reaching their third Carabao Cup final in the last four years with a brilliant 2-1 win over Southampton at St. Mary’s.
First-half goals from Darwin Nunez and Harvey Elliott sealed the win, which is Liverpool’s 20th win this season under Slot (D3, L1).
The win means that the Reds are now in the last four of the competition, with Arsenal and Newcastle already in the next round, ahead of the semi-final draw.
Wednesday’s game at St. Mary’s saw many of the club’s youngsters take centre stage.
With many first-team stars like Virgil van Dijk, Mohamed Salah, Luis Diaz, and Dominik Szoboszlai rested for the night, there was space in the starting XI and on the bench for a few academy stars.
Highly-rated young midfielder Trey Nyoni started the game from the word go, while his fellow academy teammate Rio Ngumoha was named on the bench.
Meanwhile, James McConnell, Jayden Danns, James Norris, and Amara Nallo were among the academy stars on the bench.
The absence of Van Dijk and Andy Robertson and the injuries to Connor Bradley and Ibrahima Konate meant that Liverpool was short in central defence against Southampton.
Joe Gomez, who would have partnered Jarell Quansah in central defence, was forced to play left back, as Robertson was suspended for this game, while Kostas Tsimikas was only fit to start the game from the bench.
In the absence of a defensive cover, Slot selected Wataru Endo as one of his central defenders, and the Japanese international had a superb performance.
