(Video) What Virgil van Dijk did in 59th minute of Liverpool win had fans in Yokohama erupting | OneFootball

It’s not often that a substitution which sees Virgil van Dijk going off is met with raucous cheers from Liverpool fans, but that was the case at the Nissan Stadium on Wednesday.

It wasn’t for any malign reason, though – the Dutchman was roundly applauded by Reds supporters in Yokohama when he made his way off the pitch in the 59th minute.

The increase in decibel levels was attributable to the introduction of Wataru Endo, with the 32-year-old playing for his club in his native Japan for the first time since he joined LFC two summers ago.

What did Van Dijk do as he left the pitch in Yokohama?

As if the locals’ excitement at seeing Liverpool’s number 3 enter the fray wasn’t enthusiastic enough, one action from Van Dijk then sent them into a proper frenzy.

As the two players converged on the touchline, the centre-back removed his captain’s armband and handed it straight to Endo, who had the honour of being the Reds’ skipper for the final half-hour or so in his homeland, much to the delight of many inside the Nissan Stadium.

Image via The Redmen TV

Endo deserves every bit of applause he gets

However popular Wataru might be on Merseyside – and that he most certainly is – it’s surpassed by the hero-worship that he receives back home, not least as captain of the national team and a Premier League-winning tour de force.

His phenomenal commitment on the pitch and his expertise as a ‘closer’ off the bench has endeared him to Liverpool fans everywhere, and also to his boss, who recognises the midfielder’s huge value to the team.

Speaking after today’s match (via Liverpool Echo), Arne Slot hailed Endo’s contribution towards the top-flight title triumph in 2024/25 and said that he ‘totally deserved getting the armband’ for 30 minutes against Yokohama.

Rio Ngumoha rightly had supporters out of their seats with his stupendous solo goal in the closing stages on Wednesday, but it could be argued that not even he elicited the biggest cheer of the night at the Nissan Stadium.

Instead, that went to the local hero in the number 3 shirt as Van Dijk handed him the captain’s armband on the hour mark.

You can view the reaction to Endo coming on below, via @TheRedmenTV on X: