Should Liverpool drop Wirtz?

Karan Ahgun

— 3 min read
Should Liverpool drop Wirtz?

After back-to-back defeats in the past week, Liverpool are having a little struggle and the pressure is being heaped on £116 million man, Florian Wirtz. So far, Wirtz has struggled to make a meaningful impact for Liverpool, especially in Premier League games. This lack of impact has prompted the likes of Jamie Carragher to call for the German to be dropped for their game against Chelsea, in an effort to recapture their form from last season. So, should Arne Slot go back to what works or should he stick with the big money signing?

In almost all of Liverpool's games this season, there have been periods where they've looked unbalanced and really susceptible to conceding chances. The addition of Wirtz has caused issues with the midfield balance of the team and as a result, one of either Mac Allister or Szoboszlai will probably be out of the team or out of position. Liverpool's luck ran out against Crystal Palace last weekend as they were unable grab a result out of a game where they did not perform to their best ability. Despite scoring a 87th minute equaliser, it was clear that Crystal Palace deserved there 97th minute winner on the balance of the whole game. The selection of Wirtz in this game pushed him onto the left wing, where his impact was even more limited, and it feels like Slot is just shoehorning him into the team at this point.

By dropping Wirtz, Liverpool can rely upon the midfield set up which worked so well for them last season. The trio of Gravenberch, Mac Allister, and Szoboszlai looked to have the perfect balance, but so far Slot has not seen them play together for a prolonged period of time. The departure of Trent Alexander-Arnold is also affecting the balance of the team as the England international was able to invert into midfield at times and had great playmaking responsibilities. The stats also show that Wirtz is picking up the ball a lot from deeper positions, just like Trent did last season, which has been affecting the German's influence. Maybe if someone else would take that responsibility, it could keep Wirtz in more attacking positions where he can showcase the best of his talents.

Liverpool will hope to find a solution to this issue very quickly, and try to get him into positions where he thrived most at Bayer Leverkusen. Of course it takes time for players coming from abroad to adapt to the physicality and intensity of the Premier League, but Wirtz won't be afforded the same amount of time as someone who costed half as much as him. So, we shall see if he can upturn his form over the season as he gets more used to the demands of the Premier League!

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