'It's not his fault': Julian Nagelsmann defends Florian Wirtz from criticism over Liverpool form

Germany manager says adaptation requires time and that player creates many goal chances in Premier League.

Florian Wirtz has had better phases in his career. The attacking midfielder transferred from Bayer Leverkusen to Liverpool in the transfer window in the middle of this year and is still facing difficulties in contributing effectively to the team's attack. In the Germany national team, the situation is not much different.

However, even in poor form, Wirtz is one of manager Julian Nagelsmann's trusted players and was called up again for the October international break commitments. The first match was against Luxembourg on Friday (10th), which ended in a 4-0 German victory in the Qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup.

Nagelsmann defends Wirtz despite lack of goals

The number 17 did not score any of the goals, but came close with a free-kick that hit the post.

After the clash, Nagelsmann came out in defence of the player and denied being "dissatisfied" with him even though he did not have direct participation in the scoreline. "He played well, made many moves, tried hard," stated the manager, who took the opportunity to comment on the midfielder's moment in England.

"Even though he has not scored goals, Flo (Wirtz) is the player who creates most chances in the Premier League. It is not his fault if the teammate does not take advantage of them."

Nagelsmann stressed that, if colleagues do not convert the opportunities, "it ends up being bad for the statistics" of Wirtz. "But that is not even a third of the truth," he concluded.

Pressure on Wirtz driven by Liverpool's high investment

Florian Wirtz created 11 chances in seven appearances wearing Liverpool's shirt in the Premier League according to data from platform Opta, however, he has not recorded any assists. The German tends to appear well in attack, with four shots on target from inside the opposition area and 26 touches counted in the space.

The demands for goals and assists are motivated mainly by the high investment made by the Reds in the signing: £106.8m.

Nagelsmann warned that adaptation to the new league requires time. "He knows what he is capable of and how things work in football. He had to work hard," he said.

"We know how things work: as soon as he scores three goals, he will be the great signing."

Wirtz is not the only one to have his performance questioned in Arne Slot's team. Liverpool's collective has been below what it was last season, with even Mohamed Salah included in criticism.

After facing Northern Ireland on Monday (13th) in the Qualifiers, the German should report back at Anfield in expectation of contributing with a goal and assist in the derby against Manchester United on 19th (Sunday), in the Premier League.

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