Two Ways Liverpool Can Fix Struggling Florian Wirtz Amid Growing Criticism

Jamie Carragher has yet again vocalized his displeasure with Florian Wirtz, calling on Liverpool to drop the $158 million attacking midfielder in the coming matches.

Things are looking increasingly hopeless for the 23-year-old, who, over 12 months after joining the Reds, continues to deliver underwhelming performances in England. During the weekend’s 3–0 defeat to Manchester City, he was particularly disappointing.

Another ineffective showing prompted rage from one of Wirtz’s biggest critics over recent months, former Liverpool defender Carragher, who blasted the playmaker for having “absolutely no goal threat whatsoever.”

Carragher fumed on Sky Sports: “What Florian Wirtz is doing for Liverpool is not enough right now. He’s played 55, 60 games for Liverpool. If we were looking at [Bradley] Barcola, he has played four or five. You would want more but hold your horses. If you were critical of him, it would be over the top, but not the guy that has played 60 games.”

He added: “He shouldn’t be in the Liverpool team right now. I don’t want to hammer Liverpool players. But we’re not saying this after five to 10 games, we’re saying this after 50 to 60 games.

“Wirtz never looks like scoring a goal. You don’t come away thinking he missed chances or he worked the goalkeeper. There was absolutely nothing where you thought he put someone through, or nearly scored. There’s absolutely no goal threat whatsoever.”

Liverpool supporters were willing to give Wirtz the benefit of the doubt during his debut season, allowing for an adjustment period within a struggling team under Arne Slot. But patience is now running very, very thin.

Wirtz has delivered only one goal involvement this season in seven appearances, adding to just 15 produced last term. Given the price Liverpool paid for him—a club record at the time—much more is needed to silence growing criticism.

So, how could Liverpool re-energize their No. 7?

Follow Carragher’s Advice

Florian Wirtz — Dropping Wirtz could benefit everyone. | Alex Livesey/Getty Images

Liverpool have already tried playing Wirtz through long stretches of poor form. He started 40 of his 49 appearances during his maiden year with the club, often being selected despite his mediocre displays in domestic and European competitions.

One thing Liverpool haven’t tried, however, is dropping him.

Carragher is right: currently, Wirtz is not worthy of his starting position. Perhaps Liverpool should heed the advice of their former center back.

An injury sustained by Dominik Szoboszlai certainly makes this option less appealing, with the Hungarian the obvious replacement for Wirtz as a No. 10, but the German can have few complaints if he drops to the bench once Szoboszlai returns.

Not only would Szoboszlai provide a greater goal threat in the role—he’s already scored three times this season—he would also provide Liverpool with greater defensive security courtesy of his impressive defensive acumen.

Perhaps a break from the pressure that comes with being Liverpool’s aspiring playmaker would benefit Wirtz. Bringing him off the bench for the final half-hour of matches could see him thrive against tiring defenses, offering the Reds some poise and finesse as games become increasingly stretched.

If he can serve up some goals and assists late in matches, it could provide a much-needed confidence boost that would facilitate a return to the starting XI.

Mix Up Wirtz’s Position

“I see him more probably in that position behind the striker. We know that he has played with Germany more on the left sometimes. But, I think we’re going to start working with him in that position behind the striker,” Iraola enthused in back in July when quizzed about the best use of Wirtz.

However, after a slow start under the Spaniard, perhaps Liverpool’s only alternative strategy to reignite Wirtz’s career requires some trial and error. A shake-up in his role could be the last resort.

Wirtz has been used off the left wing by Liverpool and Germany previously, albeit it’s not his preferred position. He started on that flank 14 times for the Reds last season, scoring once and providing two assists, with a number of those showings come in late December and early January—the period during which Wirtz played his best soccer.

Given Liverpool currently have four natural left wingers in their squad, two of which were signed over the summer, redeployment on that side looks unlikely, but there is currently a space yet to be claimed on the right wing. Could Wirtz blossom—or at least be less of a problem—in that position?

As per Transfermarkt, Wirtz has featured 11 times as a right winger across his senior club career—and his record isn’t bad. He’s scored four goals and provided three assists for Leverkusen and Liverpool, with three of those goal involvements coming in two appearances for the latter last campaign.

Another possible position for Wirtz is a false nine role—perhaps a temporary solution to Alexander Isak’s injury. Again, this isn’t a familiar position for him, but was experimented with on occasion by Slot last season—even if the results were mixed.

With Isak missing, Hugo Ekitiké absent for the long-term and no other specialist senior strikers, Iraola could experiment with Wirtz as a deep-lying center forward in the coming matches.

At this point, Liverpool have little to lose by trying him in a new position.

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