Man City 3-0 Liverpool: Match Review
Florian Wirtz has faced significant scrutiny since joining Liverpool for £100 million in the summer transfer window.
Arne Slot might not have answered more questions about one member of his squad.
In truth, the Liverpool head coach will not be surprised, given the price tag involved. A fee of £100 million - which could potentially rise to £116 million - means that the spotlight has been on Florian Wirtz since his arrival.
While Alexander Isak cost a British record fee of £125 million, there have been some mitigating circumstances around his slow start. He missed the majority of pre-season as he trained away from Newcastle, meaning he was well short of match fitness before suffering a groin injury.
But Wirtz was signed before Liverpool reported back for duty after winning the Premier League title. Given that the Reds hijacked what appeared to be a likely move to Bayern Munich, there was plenty of excitement. He also arrived on Merseyside with a reputation as one of the best prospects in Europe. In his five-and-a-half years at Bayer Leverkusen, Wirtz scored 57 goals and 63 assists in 197 appearances.
Wirtz was a key player when Leverkusen created history in the 2023-24 season. He was part of a team that won Die Werkself their maiden Bundesliga title without losing a game, as well as the DFB-Pokal. The only match that Xabi Alonso’s side lost was to Atalanta in the Europa League final.
Early struggles
But Wirtz has had a soft launch to his Liverpool career. In 11 league games, he has yet to record a goal or an assist. As a result, he has come under scrutiny. After the 3-0 loss to Manchester City last week, Gary Neville claimed that the 22-year-old looked like a ‘little boy’. Kop favourite Jamie Carragher has now said he is worried about Wirtz despite it still being relatively early.
The former Cologne man is now on international duty with Germany. Newspaper BILD has addressed the flak that Wirtz has received and given an insight into how he will be feeling. It is suggested that there is ‘no need to feel sorry’ for him because his ‘quality and mentality are outstanding’. In addition, it’s said that reproval from the likes of Neville and Rio Ferdinand should not be taken too serious because they are former players of Liverpool’s fierce foes Manchester United. It is claimed that Wirtz is already ‘considered a leader and the face of the future’ at Liverpool.
Nagelsmann gives verdict
Germany boss Julian Nagelsmann has discussed the form of Wirtz ahead of 2026 World Cup qualifiers against Luxembourg and Slovakia. He said: “To be honest, the overall situation doesn’t make it easy for Flo either. The whole club isn’t as stable this year as it was last year.
“It’s much harder to slip into the team now. If you look at the game against Man City, they were actually the worse team over the 90 minutes. We all know what he’s capable of and it’s perfectly normal for a player of his age to go through a bit of a dip in form.
“We can’t expect him to perform at the same level for three years straight. Instead, we need to support him a little bit so he can clear his head.”
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