Jamie Carragher has praised Florian Wirtz’s performance against West Ham United on Sunday, with the former Liverpool center-back claiming it was his best display so far in the Premier League.
The German played in an advanced midfield role as the Reds won 2-0 in the capital, but habitually floated onto the left-hand side of the pitch. It was from that area that Wirtz excelled during his time at Bayer Leverkusen in a 3-4-3 system, but replicating that in Arne Slot’s 4-2-3-1 shape has not been a natural transition.
Sunday was perhaps the first indication that Slot has found a way to maximize Wirtz’s talents, with the 22-year-old creating several dangerous openings for teammates, and linking well with the likes of Cody Gakpo and Alexander Isak.
He also completed 42 of his 45 passes, but did spurn a great scoring opportunity late in the second half.
Speaking after the game, Carragher said he was delighted with Wirtz’s performance at the London Stadium, and claimed Slot needs to select him in a similar role going forward.
“Liverpool know they have a good player; it’s just whether he can transfer what he did in Germany to the Premier League,” the ex-defender said on Sky Sports.
Florian Wirtz on the ball
Wirtz impressed in Liverpool's trip to West Ham (Image: Getty Images)
“I think that was the first sign in seeing not just as a player for Liverpool… I said when Florian Wirtz came to Liverpool that I almost see him as a replacement for Kevin De Bruyne in the Premier League.
“We have spoken about Florian Wirtz being a 10, but predominantly he likes the inside left channel. I actually thought he was going to play wide right today and come in from the side, as he has done in the last few games when he has replaced Mo Salah. But this was better.
“This is where they want him on the pitch and this is where he is at his best. That is why today was his best Liverpool performance [in the Premier League].”
MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - MAY 2: Jamie Carragher during the Premier League match between Manchester City FC and Wolverhampton Wanderers FC at Etihad Stadium on May 2, 2025 in Manchester, England. (Photo by Robbie Jay Barratt - AMA/Getty Images)
Carragher claimed Liverpool's squad's make-up is "not right" (Image: Robbie Jay Barratt - AMA, Getty Images)
Despite Wirtz’s encouraging performance, Carragher feels it poses a problem, especially given Liverpool’s no.7 shone while Mohamed Salah remained on the bench. Finding a way to incorporate all of Liverpool’s disparate players into one coherent team could prove a real challenge.
“The make-up of the squad is not right,” he opined. “The best way to explain it… we’re all delighted from a Liverpool point of view that Florian Wirtz looks like the Florian Wirtz we expected. He’s the real deal; he’s in his position now.
“Isak has got his first goal; that’s Isak up and running now. But you think of the knock-on effect of that. How does Florian Wirtz affect Dominik Szoboszlai? How does Isak affect [Hugo] Ekitike?
“You go back to the make-up of the squad, and Liverpool by leaving out Mo Salah today, didn’t really play with a real right winger. That’s fine, Liverpool did really well to get Szoboszlai inside, but it’s not perfect for Joe Gomez going forward.
“There’s a knock-on effect when certain players play well and what it does to other players. But that will be the last thing on the manager’s mind. He will just be relieved.”