Florian Wirtz has been coming in for some stick after failing to spark during Liverpool’s FA Cup failure against Manchester City on Saturday.
The Reds started brightly but soon faded at the Etihad Stadium, with Wirtz unable to make an impact during the 4-0 defeat.
It marked the latest low point in a difficult debut season at Anfield for the German, and according to TalkSPORT pundit and Liverpool fan Tony Cascarino, Wirtz is beginning to become an irritant.
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Manchester City v Liverpool - Emirates FA Cup Quarter Final
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Wirtz needs to tone down the flicks
When Wirtz is on form, he is a magical footballer to watch. However, he has been too far off the pace far too often this season, decorating games rather than truly influencing them.
With a price tag as big as the one he commanded last summer, Liverpool fans have needed to see more. Speaking the day after defeat at the Etihad, Cascarino claimed that so far Wirtz has looked more like a Harlem Globetrotter than a £100m footballer.
“I’m fed up with Wirtz’s little flicks. He keeps flicking everything!” railed the former striker.
“Do you remember the Harlem Globetrotters? They were a team that would showboat, that’s what they did, they weren’t really a serious professional team. I’m watching some Liverpool players, and I think Wirtz is one of the biggest offenders of it, who showboat when they play.”
Manchester City v Liverpool - Emirates FA Cup Quarter Final
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“I’m not denying he’s a hugely talented lad, but if I’m looking at numbers of what he actually creates for the team and goals, it’s really low. He’s a showboater. That’s how I see him.
“I watched him in the year he got quite a number of goals at Bayer Leverkusen going back a couple of years and he was not a showboater. He would do it every now and again but he also had a massive effect on the way they played.”
Had Wirtz been playing in a fully functioning team, it is probable that his disguised flicks and pieces of improvised skill would come off and elevate Liverpool’s attacking play.
However, the 22-year-old has been misplacing passes, killing attacks and wasting opportunities. With Liverpool struggling to do anything positive for much of the season, his lack of conviction has indeed become incredibly frustrating. This is part of what makes Wirtz a great footballer, but if he turns in another season like this next year, that reputation will start to be severely tested.
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