Emile Heskey has drawn similarities between Florian Wirtz and Philippe Coutinho
Emile Heskey has drawn similarities between Florian Wirtz and Philippe Coutinho (Image: Getty)
Emile Heskey, the former Liverpool and England striker, believes there are similarities between Florian Wirtz and ex-Reds midfielder Philippe Coutinho despite the former having a "totally different type of character".
Wirtz has struggled to make his mark at Anfield since joining the club from Bayer Leverkusen last summer in a deal worth £116million, which set a new British record at the time.
However, the Germany international failed to live up to that colossal price tag in his debut season.
He showed glimpses of brilliance but couldn't become the key creative spark Liverpool needed as they limped to a fifth-placed finish in the Premier League.
Wirtz has continued to struggle in the early stages of the new campaign, leading to a wave of renewed scrutiny over his sub-par performances.
Heskey, who scored 60 goals in 223 appearances for Liverpool between 2000 and 2004, thinks Wirtz is a similar type of player to Coutinho but with an entirely different mindset.
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He also believes Reds supporters will eventually run out of patience with the 23-year-old if he continues to struggle at Anfield.
Speaking to Express Sport on behalf of Casinolyze, Heskey said: "I still think he's yet to find his feet and where he actually fits within this system.
"I mentioned that he looks similar to Coutinho, and Coutinho had a fantastic spell at Liverpool, so I was hoping that he could actually emulate that. But he's a totally different type of character.
Wirtz has struggled to impress since joining the Reds last summer
Wirtz has struggled to impress since joining the Reds last summer (Image: Getty)
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"The only worry is, how long do you give someone to find their feet? That's the problem, especially at a club like Liverpool where they don't have time for you to find your feet, you've got to hit the ground running. So he's found it difficult in that sense.
"Liverpool fans are forgiving. They've given him more than enough time and plenty of opportunity to get up to speed but that patience will run out.
"He is finding it difficult because it's a totally different mindset, a totally different game, and a totally different structure to the German Bundesliga."