The former Liverpool defender has been speaking about the growing influence of Florian Wirtz.
Jamie Carragher believes that Florian Wirtz has a chance to answer his Liverpool critics when they face Manchester City.
The Reds signed Wirtz for a fee of £100 million from Bayer Leverkusen in the summer transfer window. The attacking midfielder was sensational for Bayer Leverkusen, recording 57 goals and 65 assists in 197 appearances. He played a talismanic role when Leverkusen won the Bundesliga and DFB-Pokal double in the 2023-24 season.
However, Wirtz has a difficult start to his Liverpool career as he acclimatised to the Premier League. In a 3-0 loss to Man City at the Etihad Stadium, Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville said the Germany international looked like a ‘little boy’.
But Wirtz has lit the touchpaper in recent weeks. He has scored six goals in his past 10 matches. And as Liverpool welcome City to Anfield, Carragher reckons that Wirtz could be a cross between Etihad Stadium favourites David Silva and Kevin De Bruyne - and he has the opportunity to prove Neville wrong.
Speaking on Monday Night Football, former Kop defender Carragher said: “When I watch Florian Wirtz, I was thinking maybe is he going to be a player that is easy on the eye? Maybe reminiscent of David Silva type of player. OK, David Silva wouldn't have got the numbers of Kevin De Bruyne but he knitted everything together.
“I think he has got a bit of both.I'm not sure if he will ever get the numbers Kevin De Bruyne did but maybe he'll be a bit similar to David Silva. There is no doubt he's a quality player.
“When we're talking about his slow start, one of the games that really stood out was Manchester City away. Gary Neville said on commentary, and rightly so, that he looked like a little boy out there. We gave him a few months coming to England. It was a big, high-profile game. He's now got Manchester City at Anfield.
“He's got this confidence, a partnership with Ekitike. He's gone from a little boy, you have to take your criticism when you cost a lot of money, but he has a chance to shove those words down Gary Neville's throat.”
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