Liverpool's Right-Back Dilemma: Frimpong and Endo's Struggles in EFL Cup

Liverpool moved into the fourth round of the EFL Cup on Tuesday night, but the real story at Anfield sat beneath the scoreline: a right-back who cannot convince, and a veteran midfielder who no longer looks part of the picture at all.

Andoni Iraola rang the changes – ten of them – from the side that drew with Fulham at the weekend. Cup football is supposed to be the laboratory, the place where managers test ideas and fringe players. Iraola leaned into that, throwing in youth and squad men as Liverpool faced Roberto De Zerbi’s Tottenham.

Trey Nyoni, James McConnell and Lewis Koumas all earned rare starts. So did Jeremie Frimpong, handed the right-back role after slipping behind Ronald Araujo in recent weeks.

Frimpong Exposed on the Flank

Iraola’s blueprint relies on full-backs who fly forward, stretch games, and hurt teams. Frimpong, signed to do exactly that, barely laid a glove on Tottenham in the final third.

Instead, his flank became a target.

Spurs repeatedly funneled attacks down his side, testing him with the pace and movement of Mathys Tel, Mohammed Kudus and Omar Marmoush. Over the 90 minutes, Frimpong struggled to keep that trio under control, and Liverpool’s right looked vulnerable whenever Tottenham built up a head of steam.

This is not a one-off concern. Since arriving for £30m from Bayer Leverkusen in the summer of 2025, the Dutchman has yet to convince in a red shirt. Sections of the fanbase have turned on him, frustrated by performances that have rarely matched his price tag or his reputation.

Right now, the hierarchy at right-back is brutally clear. Araujo is the first-choice. Conor Bradley is on his way back from injury and expected to return to the rotation soon. Frimpong, on current evidence, is the one scrambling to prove he belongs.

Liverpool have not yet replaced what Trent Alexander-Arnold gave them before his move to Real Madrid – the passing range, the creativity, the authority on that side of the pitch. If Frimpong is viewed internally as one of the weakest links in the squad, the logic points in one direction: the club will have to go back into the market for a new starting right-back.

For the 24-year-old, the message is stark. He needs a sharp, sustained upturn to alter the perception that he is a costly misfit rather than a long-term solution.

Endo Frozen Out

If Frimpong’s night raised doubts, Wataru Endo’s told an even harsher story – without him kicking a ball.

On a night when Iraola shuffled almost his entire pack, the 33-year-old did not get on the pitch. He has been an unused substitute in all four of Liverpool’s Premier League games this season and was left out of the 25-man Champions League squad last week, alongside Federico Chiesa. McConnell and Nyoni, both far younger and far less experienced, made that list ahead of him.

Tuesday looked like the perfect window to give Endo minutes. Ten changes. A home cup tie. A chance to rotate not just around him, but into him. He can play as a holding midfielder and showed in pre-season against Como that he can fill in at centre-back too.

Iraola still turned away.

He started 22-year-old McConnell and 19-year-old Nyoni in midfield instead, even with Ryan Gravenberch and Dominik Szoboszlai only among the substitutes. When the Spanish coach spoke recently, he did not hide the reality of the competition in Endo’s role.

“The problem is, in front of him in his position, I have a lot of players,” Iraola said. “He’s competing against a lot of players because we are also giving minutes to Trey (Nyoni), Ryan (Gravenberch), Alexis (Mac Allister), Dom (Szoboszlai), players that I am selecting right now. But Wata is definitely a player that I like and for sure he will have his moments.”

The words were respectful. The team sheet was ruthless.

If a senior professional cannot get onto the pitch in a heavily rotated EFL Cup tie – when teenagers are starting and first-team regulars are being protected – the question writes itself: when, exactly, will those “moments” arrive?

Endo’s contract expires at the end of the season. With younger options trusted ahead of him and no clear route back into the core group, Liverpool are staring at their last realistic chance to recoup a fee in January. All the signs point towards the club exploring that route.

Iraola’s selections suggest he does not see the Japan international as part of his medium-term plan. For player and club, an exit in a few months’ time increasingly feels less like a possibility and more like the inevitable next step.