Former Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp has once again given his thoughts on Florian Wirtz's situation, after the playmaker has endured a difficult year since joining from Bayern Munich.
Florian Wirtz (L) looks on with team mate Karim Adeyemi during a Team Germany training session
Jurgen Klopp has defended Florian Wirtz(Image: (Photo by Alexander Hassenstein/Getty Images))
Jurgen Klopp has defended Florian Wirtz once again, claiming that the playmaker walked into a difficult situation at Liverpool last year, following the passing of Diogo Jota, while believing that he has made a positive start to this season.
It follows questions being asked of the playmaker, who struggled through the previous campaign, after his $153 million move from Bayer Leverkusen. While Liverpool was hoping that Wirtz could add some creative flair to the frontline, there were initial difficulties in trying to adjust to the Premier League, while the whole team wasn't quite functioning as one.
That resulted in him ending the campaign with seven goals and ten assists across all competitions. With a year's worth of adjusting to the division and the new environment behind him, there was some hope that the German star could kick on this season.
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However, with just one assist across six appearances this season, he hasn't quite grabbed hold of games in the way many had hoped.
That has led to some questions for Andoni Iraola about how to get the best out of him, while Klopp has been asked those questions too, after he became Wirtz's national team manager with Germany.
Both managers have defended the attacking midfielder, with the latter deciding the double down with his verdict on the star, after he was called up early to a Germany squad that was split in two for the extended international break.
Speaking to the media ahead of Sunday's clash with Greece, Klopp explained on Wirtz's situation: "When you look at the overall context, Flo joined Liverpool at a very unfortunate time.
Jurgen Klopp
Jurgen Klopp has called up Florian Wirtz early(Image: Marvin Ibo Guengoer - GES Sportfoto/Getty Images)
"It's about the passing of Diogo Jota. He joined a team with the players whose priority was not football at that time, which is very understandable."
It was a point that Andy Robertson had recently made in an interview, where he suggested that the sad passing of Jota had impacted the environment that players had stepped into at Liverpool last summer.
With a year now under his belt at Liverpool, Klopp has suggested that there is more to come. He added: "He learned a lot from his first year. Now is a new season under a new coach, he started all games, I think.
"He's physically doing very well. The team is starting to find itself again. Attacking players always need a functioning team around them.
"Everyone who loves football can still see what an outstanding player Flo Wirtz is. We can't do more than we're doing here, namely build him up in our team with enough training and playing time. Bit by bit, give him certainty, a good feeling, and then send him back to Liverpool. I wish him all the best"
It further underlines the belief from coaches that Wirtz will come good for Liverpool, though there is growing impatience among critics and fans alike about when he will start to dictate and decide games more often.
It remains to be seen when that may come, but the Reds will certainly hope that some time spent with Klopp will help him rediscover that spark he had at Bayer Leverkusen.