The Florian Wirtz mystery: why has he not found Leverkusen form at Liverpool?

Two of our writers pick over the German’s contribution to Liverpool and what the £116m forward could yet produce

Some criticism has been OTT and a fee rising to £116m heightens demands but, yes, compared with his performances in Germany and for Germany Wirtz has underwhelmed at Liverpool. The past week has encapsulated his Liverpool career so far. In the Champions League rout of Lask he was everywhere, exploiting gaps between and behind the Austrian club’s defence and knitting together a dominant display against limited opposition. In the previous game against Manchester City, however, when Andoni Iraola needed big players to step up in the absence of Alexander Isak, Cody Gakpo and Dominik Szoboszlai, Wirtz was ineffective, wasteful and withdrawn when his team were chasing the game at 0-1. It also did not help his cause that Rayan Cherki, a cheaper alternative whom Liverpool considered and passed on, completed City’s victory with a sublime goal. AH

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