Florian Wirtz’s performances for Liverpool following his record-breaking move to the Premier League were always going to be micro-analysed. Rivals and pundits alike were always going to be hypercritical of the German playmaker.
It is part and parcel of the £100million transfer fee.
But there’s no objectivity when it comes to Anfield’s latest No.7. He’s yet to score or assist in the Premier League so, in the eyes of the masses, he’s struggling. The good parts of his performances for the Premier League champions are being downplayed, likely because he’s an attacking midfielder and he’s being judged solely on output.
In this article, we’ll cover:
Context is being thrown right out of the window when it comes to the former Bayer Leverkusen man. Arne Slot rotated his team for the Merseyside derby following a midweek clash with Atletico Madrid in the Champions League.
Instead of this being viewed as the Dutch tactician trying to manage the minutes ahead of a third game in seven days, many bought into the idea that the 22-year-old was dropped rather than rested.
Slot even explained the reasoning. On Wednesday, he said: “We ask a bit more from him off the ball and defensively as well.”
He followed that up on Saturday when speaking to TNT Sports by saying: “Like I said it’s three games in seven days, not in eight days, this is Sunday, Wednesday then Saturday. This is one of the most intense games that we have to play, so we try to manage it during Burnley and Atletico. For today I think Szoboszlai, who played both of those games as well, is more used to the intensity of the Premier League and this programme than Florian is coming from Germany. So it’s only to do with so many games in limited time. I think he will feature, but not from the start.”
Wirtz’s luck in the final third
Wirtz was given 30 minutes off of the bench against Everton, carving out one chance and completing 100% of his attempted passes. While the No.7 hasn’t been among the goals or assists for the Reds in the league, he’s still had a positive start to life on Merseyside, even if he is adapting to life in a new league.
Across his six appearances in the Premier League and Champions League, he’s created 14 chances and has an Expected Goals Contribution of 2.4, with the majority of that coming from Expected Assists (1.82). With better finishing from teammates and a little bit of luck, Wirtz has three assists to his name and the entire narrative around his start to the season is completely different.
Wirtz might not be dominating games, but he’s having moments. He wasn’t ever going to be running the show this early on though. Liverpool retooled their attack this summer and in the process they changed their system, moving away from a 4-3-3 and using a 4-2-3-1. Not only is the No.7 finding his feet, the entire team is in transition too, especially in the final third.
Whereas last season the attacking midfielder, most of the time it was Dominik Szoboszlai, was more of a facilitator. He’d do a lot of running, often leaning more to the right hand side to cover for Mohamed Salah and Trent Alexander-Arnold. This season, Wirtz is tasked with playing a lot more centrally and given the freedom to pop up all over the pitch to influence proceedings. It’s a case of striking a balance and finding a way that allows Wirtz, Salah and the centre-forward the opportunity to thrive. So far, this hasn’t exactly been the case.
The attack has been a little dysfunctional. It’s why the Reds rank fifth for Expected Goals (8.13). They do, however, lead the way for goals (11). They’ve made the most of moments.
Teething problems were inevitable though. When you rejig key parts of the attack as well as change the system, there’s going to be a period of adaption. The change in shape is highlighted nicely in the passing networks. On the left is the passing network from Liverpool’s 3-2 win over Atletico Madrid in the Champions League.
Wirtz and Alexander Isak are almost overlapping in the centre of the attack. It is very much a two-man attack. On the right, we see the passing network from Liverpool’s 2-1 victory against Everton. The Reds reverted to the 4-2-4 system from last term, with Szobozlai playing more to the right, forming a triangle with Salah and Conor Bradley.
It was by design too against the Toffees, with Slot revealing as much in his post-match interview with TNT Sports: “Similar goals, both times we targeted the same area where we had players with higher pace to come into those situations. The first one, great finish. The second one, same area.”
New-look attack starting to click
There are, however, signs that the new-look attack is clicking.
Against Atletico Madrid, a team famed for their defence under Diego Simeone, Wirtz created a match high five chances. He wasn’t anywhere near as heavily involved as Szoboszlai was in the same role against Everton, with 47 touches to his 72, but he was more impactful in the final third.
The pass maps also highlight the differences in roles, despite them occupying the same position. Wirtz floated across the final third while Szoboszlai played up and down the right. The Germany international influenced the final third whereas the Hungary skipper influenced things down the entire right flank.
Despite still getting up to speed with the rigours of the English top-flight, Wirtz is putting his stamp on things. The assists are going to come. All of the data points to it. He’s already doing a lot of things without the ball.
Ahead of the game against Burnley, Sky Sports put up a divisive graphic. It showed the Liverpool attacker ranked first for off-ball runs, runs into final third, runs ahead of the ball.
The response was predictable.
‘The Reds paid £116million for a long distance runner.’
‘No other player gets this sort of propaganda.’
But his off the ball work is one of the reasons the champions sanctioned the deal. For all of his brilliance in attack for Leverkusen, he put in the hard yards too. Atakan Karazor, the Stuttgart captain, said as much to Sky Sports.
Dabble sign-up offer: Bet £10+ & Receive £10 In Free Bets
Not signed up to Dabble yet? Here's how to claim the Bet £10+ & Receive £10 In Free Bets welcome offer:
- Sign up to Dabble through this link
- Register your account with accurate personal details
- Place your first bet of £10 or more
- Receive your £10 in free bets when your qualifying bet has setted
- Use your Free Bet on any eligible sportsbook market within 7 days
#AD 18+ 7-day free bet expiry. Stake not returned. Promotional Terms Apply. GambleAware.org
“The thing that people don’t know, or maybe don’t see on the field, is that Wirtz is, every time, running. He doesn’t stop,” said Karazor.
“You see the running statistics of Florian Wirtz. You can see them in Kicker after the games.” That is a reference to the German magazine that publishes the data each week. “Every time, Florian Wirtz is between 12 and 13 kilometres in every game.
“Of course, technique, dribbling, everything. And also the IQ for football is on a high level, on a world-class level. But I think this is the most special thing about Florian Wirtz. He doesn’t stop for 90 minutes.”
Wirtz contributing without goals and assists
His off-the-ball movement has already played a part in three goals scored by the league leaders this campaign.
In the season opener, Wirtz runs from right to left to drag Tyler Adams and Marco Senesi over to the Bournemouth right. Hugo Ekitike then bursts into the space created by the German to score the opener. The No.7 isn’t directly involved but his role in that goal cannot be overlooked.
Against Newcastle, Wirtz makes a run across the face of Joelinton to pin the Brazilian in situ. He doesn’t track the Liverpool player but he’s occupied by the run and doesn’t push out to close Ryan Gravenberch down. As a result, the Dutch midfielder is able to get a shot off and it beats Nick Pope to give Slot’s side the lead.
The 33-cap international also had a part to play in Ekitike’s goal against the Magpies. As Cody Gakpo cuts inside from the Liverpool left, Wirtz makes a run into the penalty area, taking Dan Burn with him. It creates the space needed for the Frenchman to receive a pass from the No.18 before rifling a shot past Pope.
While Wirtz isn’t credited with an assist for any of these, and his involvement cannot really be quantified, he’s making a difference in the final third. Liverpool use detailed models instead of Expected Goals, models that analyse threat based off of pitch control and player movement. These off the ball running stats on Sky Sports may seem meaningless to rivals but they’ll be high value to the Reds.
If he continues doing what he’s doing and teammates start finishing off the chances he’s creating, the £100million transfer fee will rarely be mentioned. Just like the fees paid for Virgil van Dijk and Alisson rarely get spoken about.