To say the German media have been protective of Liverpool’s Florian Wirtz in recent weeks is an understatement. Indeed, Bild, usually guided by their Leverkusen reporter Axel Hesse, have been putting up a campaign which verges on propaganda.
Throughout that, there’s been repeated digs towards Mohamed Salah. Now it’s exploded into a double page spread in this week’s Sportbild, which is titled: ‘Solo Salah becomes a problem for Wirtz and Liverpool’
It’s worth seeing what has got the German publishing giants to this stage.
Back in October, when the first doubts were circling around Wirtz, Salah was singled out for blame. According to a report at that time, the Egyptian had let his new teammate down by missing a ‘mega chance’ against Chelsea.
That would have given Wirtz an early assist. As pointed out by some Liverpool fans at the time it was something of a stretch to describe the chance in that way.
Last week saw Hesse again batting for his man. And, again, Salah was handed blame for Wirtz failing to shine.
This week’s efforts obviously take it to a new level. SportBild are outright blaming Salah and the digs are getting a little personal.
As presented by the latest Wirtz defence, the 33-year-old’s ‘time is running out… a move to Saudi Arabia is conceivable’.
Multiple examples are given of how Salah could have helped the German attacker more, before the Liverpool trouble-causing pot is stirred with the following: ‘It’s noticeable that he’s overlooked Wirtz and hasn’t made any of the other summer signings, who together cost around half a billion euros, shine. Salah has provided three assists this season, all of which led to goals, all for players who have been with the club longer.’
Essentially, Salah is to blame for everything wrong at Liverpool
Getting ready for the second half of their assassination, SportBild state: ‘Salah is increasingly becoming a major problem for Liverpool and Wirtz!’
It’s then claimed that Salah’s ‘stubbornness’ has ‘long been a topic of conversation’ in the Reds dressing room. Where SportBild have got that from is unclear. Hesse follows it up with: ‘He is the king of the champions, seemingly blocking their successful new beginning. And thus, the future of his successor as the attacking leader: €140m signing Wirtz.
German magazine SportBild blame Liverpool star Mohamed Salah for Florian Wirtz failing to shine
German magazine SportBild blame Liverpool star Mohamed Salah for Florian Wirtz failing to shine
‘According to SPORT BILD, there’s no doubt that he’s intended to be the leader of the future.’
Getting another dig in, Salah is said to ‘represent the past’, and: ‘The question is, who will dethrone Salah. The club, the coach, or his teammates? It seems quite possible that Salah will move to Saudi Arabia in the summer of 2026.’
Whether SportBild’s Leverkusen reporter is doing all of this via his own motivation, or if he’s been encouraged by outside sources, isn’t clear. Regardless, whilst defending Wirtz is understandable and even admirable to an extent, the targeting of Mohamed Salah is getting a little exaggerated.
Whilst he may not have had a great start to the season, Salah is still a great player and there could even be an argument that Wirtz’s arrival has disrupted him… something SportBild don’t even consider as they drag the Egyptian King down to semi-retirement and push him towards Saudi.
Maybe it’s time for his camp to snap back.