Wataru Endo decision could impact Liverpool plans as Mohamed Salah call looms

Liverpool midfielder Wataru Endo has revealed that he would like to play for Japan at the Olympic Games this summer. The Reds would not be obliged to let the player go to Paris and would have the power to block such a move if he is selected.

Each competing team at the Olympics is permitted three overage players, with 31-year-old Endo falling into that category. The rest of the squad has to be made up of U23 players.

And This Is Anfield reports that while no decision has been made yet on whether Endo will even be called up into the squad, his camp believes that he would be allowed to go if that were to happen. The tournament will take place between July 24 and Aug. 10, falling right in the middle of Arne Slot's first pre-season.

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Liverpool is scheduled to play Real Betis on July 27, Arsenal on July 31 and then Manchester United on August 3, all in the US, before an Anfield friendly against Sevilla on August 11. If Endo did go to the Olympics, he could miss all of those fixtures, with the new Premier League campaign kicking off the week after the Sevilla match, when the Reds will travel to Ipswich Town.

"I’m also kind of wondering what will happen," Endo has told the Japanese television show ABEMA Sports Time. "Nothing has been decided yet but my stance is that if I’m selected, I’d like to go."

Endo has played at two Olympic Games in the past so this would not be his only experience of doing so. But he could become the first Japanese player to represent his nation in three different editions of the competition.

Egypt would like Mohamed Salah to play for them in the tournament though it remains to be seen whether or not the player would push for that to happen. Again, Liverpool can block Salah, who played at London 2012, from being involved in Paris because it is not a UEFA or a FIFA tournament.

Liverpool.com says: Playing at the Olympics will have an appeal to all the players who are selected and it could put Liverpool in a difficult position, potentially. In terms of pre-season, it is vital that key men are involved and can spend as much time with Arne Slot and his coaching team as possible. For Endo, missing out such a crucial learning period could limit his minutes in the new season.