On September 24, David Segar, a renowned Opta analyst, wrote an article for The Guardian, delving into the technical characteristics and current form of Liverpool star Wirtz.

When Florian Wirtz joined Liverpool in the summer of 2025, there was, naturally, only one assumption. The reigning Premier League champions had signed one of the hottest young talents in world football – the core of Bayer Leverkusen's 2023-24 double-winning team and a key player for the German national squad. A dynamic, incredibly efficient young attacking midfielder joining a top English team; how could this transfer possibly fail?

However, football is always full of surprises. Last season, Liverpool struggled for various reasons, and Wirtz, like other new signings, failed to deliver performances commensurate with his hefty £116 million price tag. This summer, fans have been debating how much adaptation time he and another new £100m+ signing, Alexander Isak, should be given before serious questions are asked. The general consensus was to wait until after Christmas.

But it turned out the answer was already apparent after the first round of matches – Liverpool drew 2-2 away to Newcastle, with Wirtz and Isak performing poorly, leading to a deluge of criticism. Jamie Carragher, on the first Monday Night Football of the season, bluntly stated that the signing of Wirtz in 2025 might be a microcosm of "the worst transfer window in Premier League history."

"The reason I'm worried is because I don't think Wirtz is just out of form since joining Liverpool, I think what we're seeing is the real him," he said. "The worrying thing about Wirtz right now is how little he contributes to Liverpool. We expected him to lead the team to another Premier League title and Champions League glory. The gap he needs to bridge to meet expectations is simply too large, and he can't do it. Even if he improves, he still won't reach the level Liverpool initially envisioned. Antony-Iraola has to make a decision, and if it were me, Wirtz wouldn't be in the starting lineup."

Carragher also mocked Wirtz's statistics of just one assist in six games this season, calling the team's 1-0 victory over Bournemouth "one of the worst games I've seen him play in a Liverpool shirt." Iraola, however, was much more conciliatory, admitting that the German star struggled in the first half.

"He started slowly," Iraola said. "After getting through that initial difficult period, we improved, and Florian helped us raise our performance. He played much better in the second half, finding better spaces to receive and turn. I'm much happier with his second-half display."

Wirtz's statistics for that match weren't actually bad. He created three chances, tied for the team's highest with Gakpo. He won six of eight duels and also recovered possession four times, with only Mac Allister (7), R. Araujo (6), and Jaquet (6) recovering possession more often.

As Opta, perhaps we shouldn't say this, but stats don't tell the whole truth. Anyone who watched the game could see that he struggled significantly when trying to dictate play, with many passes failing to find their intended targets accurately. Wirtz completed only 26 of 37 passes (70.3%) throughout the match. This isn't uncommon for a creative midfielder, but too many simple passes were either overhit or went straight to Bournemouth defenders.

Wirtz was heavily criticized for frequently losing possession, giving it away 15 times before being substituted in the 71st minute. Only Araujo (24) and Gakpo (16) lost possession more often, but both played the full match. That said, "losing possession" is a difficult metric for absolute judgment, as creative players who attempt risky passes in the most congested areas of the field often lose possession the most.

In the second half, his run to the near post indirectly contributed to Isak's winning goal. Because the ball touched a defender before reaching Isak, this play was not credited as an assist, but without Wirtz's off-the-ball movement, the goal would not have happened. Even in the first half, he had moments of brilliance: early in the game, he skillfully dribbled past defenders, winning a free-kick just outside the Bournemouth box. He also delivered an elegant pass to Isak, which would have been a fantastic assist had Isak not shot high and wide.

However, public expectations for Wirtz are much higher than this. People expect him to step up and take control, influencing games single-handedly, just as he did at Bayer Leverkusen. Nevertheless, to conclude that Wirtz simply cannot meet expectations in the Premier League would be overly harsh. The excitement surrounding his arrival was well-founded.

After moving from Köln to Bayer Leverkusen at the age of 16, he recorded 18 goals and 21 assists in 69 games during his first two full seasons. Despite a torn ACL in his left knee in March 2022, which sidelined him for 10 months, he returned undiminished and played a pivotal role in one of the most incredible seasons in world football recent history. Bayer Leverkusen not only won their first-ever Bundesliga title but also became the first team in German top-flight history to go an entire season unbeaten. They also clinched the DFB-Pokal and reached the Europa League final – losing only once all season in all competitions, to Atalanta in the final.

That season, Wirtz scored 18 goals and provided 19 assists in 47 appearances, making him the only player in Europe's top five leagues to achieve "16 goals + 16 assists" across all competitions. In his final season before moving to England, he contributed another 16 goals and 14 assists, with 12 of those assists coming from open play, a figure surpassed only by Salah (18) and Yamal (13) in the top five leagues.

However, in his debut season for Liverpool, he managed only 7 goals and 8 assists in 49 games, and didn't even score his first Premier League goal until late December. The reigning champions struggled throughout, eventually finishing fifth and missing out on the Champions League, ending the season empty-handed. In fairness, the objective circumstances of his arrival were extremely difficult. Diogo Jota's passing cast a shadow over the club, and Slot never managed to get the team playing the fluid, collective football of the previous season.

Even so, Wirtz's performance was far from terrible. After Alexander-Arnold's departure, he was undoubtedly Liverpool's most central creative source from open play. He created 95 chances from open play across all competitions, at least 27 more than any other Liverpool teammate. But it cannot be denied that it was still a disappointing debut season.

The World Cup in the USA, Canada, and Mexico was a prime opportunity for him to prove himself. He provided 3 assists for Germany in four games before the team was eliminated in a penalty shootout against Paraguay in the Round of 32. At that time, only two players in the entire tournament had more assists than him, and only five players created more chances from open play than his nine. Nevertheless, due to Germany's overall poor performance, he still received a lot of criticism from home – such are the high expectations placed upon him.

After a full pre-season under Iraola, a new system and a fresh start were expected to bring change. In his six appearances so far this season, he has delivered at a very high level in at least two matches. In Liverpool's 2-2 home draw against Nottingham Forest, the team's overall performance was average, but Wirtz was the biggest threat. A brilliant goal he scored was disallowed for offside by Frimpong, and he then delivered a superb pass to assist Victor Muñoz for the equalizer.

His performance in the 2-1 Champions League home win against Atlético Madrid was equally impressive; had Bradley Barcola not shot wide after receiving his exquisite through ball in a one-on-one situation, he would have added another assist.

While he struggled to dominate against Newcastle, Ipswich, and Fulham, those "almost" moments of brilliance were always present. In the 2-0 win over Ipswich, he had an overall mediocre performance, but he delivered a highly threatening cross that assisted Isak's goal (which would have been a hat-trick for the latter, had it not been for a marginal offside flag).

At least in terms of possession, Wirtz has consistently tried to create danger. This season, he has made 19 progressive passes in the league (tied for 16th), on par with Ødegaard and Dewsbury-Hall. He has also made 43 penetrating passes, averaging 9.6 per 90 minutes, almost double his Premier League statistics from last season (5.2 per 90 minutes).

This season, Wirtz has also significantly improved his off-the-ball performance. He has won possession six times in the opposition's attacking third in the Premier League, with only five players achieving more. Meanwhile, only five players have made more pressures than him (419), and six players have been pressed more often (260). This indicates a high level of engagement when out of possession and an ability to effectively occupy the opposition defense when on the ball. Last season, he ranked only 12th, 21st, and 27th respectively in these three metrics in the Premier League.

In three of his first five Premier League games, Wirtz covered the most distance for the team, yet the most common criticism remains his insufficient impact on the ball. His performance has indeed fallen short of expectations, but drawing final conclusions based on just six games into the new season is clearly premature. Iraola's tactical approach is still in its nascent stages, and Liverpool as a whole is clearly far from reaching its full potential.

Wirtz is only 23 years old and is trying to establish himself in the most competitive league in the world. While it's undeniable that he is far from his peak, this does not mean he has lost the potential for improvement, nor does it suggest that the probability of significant improvement is low.

His high transfer fee is undoubtedly a focal point for critics. Fair or not, players are always linked to their transfer fees. Pogba's time at Manchester United was not considered a success, but the criticism he faced was often excessive, rooted in that £93 million transfer fee and the immense hype that accompanied his return to Old Trafford in 2016.

The core question is, can Wirtz truly reach his higher potential in England? History has seen universally recognized world-class players fail to adapt to this league, including another highly-rated former Bayer Leverkusen player, Michael Ballack – who never fully recaptured his peak form after moving from Bayern Munich to Chelsea in 2006. Liverpool has shown patience, and for now, they still need to maintain that patience. It is simply too early to make definitive and rash conclusions.

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