30-year-old Liverpool player applauds £20m Arsenal star on Instagram after latest performance

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Wataru Endō has applauded Takehiro Tomiyasu on Instagram after the Arsenal defender helped Japan book their spot in the round of 16 at the Asian Cup.

Japan potentially made harder work of reaching the next stage than some expected. They went into their final group game, against Indonesia, needing a point to guarantee that they had secured second spot.

Hajime Moriyasu’s men had been beaten by Iraq in their second game – a game in which Wataru Endō did score for the four-time winners.

Wataru Endo applauds Takehiro Tomiyasu after Japan win

But Japan were able to get the win they needed. Takehiro Tomiyasu got 82 minutes under his belt in the 3-1 victory. They are now waiting to find out whether they will face Jordan, Bahrain or South Korea in the next stage of the competition next Wednesday.

Tomiyasu has now taken to Instagram to express his delight at the nation reaching the next round of the tournament. And one of those to applaud him in response was Endo…

Arsenal and Liverpool may not be entirely pleased to see Japan get through. Of course, they will be delighted for their players. But selfishly, they will be desperate to have them back as soon as possible.

Alexis Mac Allister was excellent for Liverpool at Bournemouth. But Endo has proved a lot of people wrong in the last few weeks. And he is more naturally suited to the holding role.

Meanwhile, Tomiyasu is such an important player for Mikel Arteta to have in his squad. The £20 million signing can play anywhere across the back line. And that is particularly crucial in a campaign in which Oleksandr Zinchenko has struggled for form.

Had Japan topped their group, they would be playing their last 16 tie two days earlier. And that may have been significant had they then lost as it would have seen presumably return sooner.

But for now, there remains a question mark over when exactly Arsenal will have Tomiyasu back, and Liverpool will welcome back Endo.