Jamie Carragher's Harsh Critique of Florian Wirtz's Liverpool Career
Jamie Carragher did not bother dressing it up. For him, this was the lowest point yet of Florian Wirtz’s Liverpool career.
The former Liverpool defender watched the German closely during the 1-0 win at Bournemouth and, on Sky Sports co-commentary, his verdict was blunt. “Wirtz has been really poor again,” he said during the first half at the Vitality Stadium. “It's just nothing. Nothing is happening there at all.”
By full-time, his stance had hardened.
“That was one of the poorest I've ever seen him in a Liverpool shirt,” Carragher said on his Jamie Carragher Podcast. And then came the line that will sting around Anfield: he does not believe Wirtz will ever hit the heights that were once expected of him.
‘What we’re seeing is what he is’
Carragher has long questioned Wirtz’s output. The numbers, he feels, simply don’t stack up for a player signed to be a game-changer.
“I've been critical of the fact that he hasn't got the numbers,” he admitted. “But normally when you watch Wirtz, he's neat and tidy, he keeps possession, there's things that you like. He gets out of a tight situation where you're normally expecting your player to lose the ball.”
That used to be enough to buy patience. Not anymore.
“The reason I worry is, I don't think Wirtz is in poor form since he came to Liverpool. I actually think what we're seeing is what he is.
“I was worried for Wirtz probably 12 months ago. And maybe that was a little bit early to say that, but I didn't say it. It was just in the back of my head.”
He traces that concern back to a trip to Burnley, when a late Mo Salah penalty got Liverpool out of trouble but Wirtz left no mark.
“When I was watching that game it was what I've seen for the last 12 months: I don't see how he's going to hurt you. It's just neat and tidy. And in some way, the price tag for that type of player should be half of what Liverpool have paid.”
The fee, and the expectation that came with it, sits at the heart of Carragher’s frustration.
“The worry for Wirtz now is that his performances so far, or what he's given Liverpool, is so low. Where we were expecting him was to take Liverpool to another league title, to take Liverpool to a Champions League.
“The gap he's got to get to almost justify what people were expecting, I almost think is too big. You can't get there. Even if he improves a bit and gets there, it's still not what Liverpool thought they were getting.”
Knock-on effects and a selection problem
Carragher’s criticism is not just about Wirtz in isolation. It’s about the chain reaction his selection creates.
“And it's not just Wirtz, it's the knock-on effect. So when he plays at No 10, it means Dominik Szoboszlai has to play central midfield. I don't think Szoboszlai is a central-midfield player, I don't.”
That tactical reshuffle, in Carragher’s eyes, weakens Liverpool twice: once in the No 10 role, and again deeper in midfield.
It all feeds into a decision he believes Andoni Iraola can no longer avoid.
‘He can’t be in the team against Man City’
Liverpool’s schedule after the three-week international break is brutal. Manchester City come to Anfield on October 11. Brentford and Brighton follow in the league. Arsenal await at the Emirates on October 1. Around those games, there are Champions League ties with LASK and Villarreal, plus a Carabao Cup fourth-round clash with Chelsea.
Carragher does not want to see Wirtz anywhere near the XI when Enzo Maresca’s City arrive.
“I think going forward Iraola's got a decision to make here. Wirtz would not be in my Liverpool team,” he said.
He felt the Bournemouth match was a fork in the road.
“I thought this Bournemouth game was a big game for Wirtz. Because if he doesn't produce, he's then going to have a three-week break. By the time we come back, we're into October. Before you know it, it'll be Christmas in six to eight weeks, or it'll feel like we're getting to Christmas. He has to do something!”
Then Carragher went wider, comparing Wirtz to players who cost far less but deliver far more, at least in terms of tangible impact.
“If you go through the Premier League and think of players in his position – not just for the top teams, forget the top teams who we should be judging him against, I'm talking about normal Premier League players in the middle of the table – who have done more for their clubs.
“I think of Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall at Everton. No one out there would say Dewsbury-Hall is a better player than Wirtz, or would go for more money than Wirtz, or would cost £120m. But every three or four weeks he scores a goal.
“I watched Morgan Gibbs-White for Nottingham Forest last week at Aston Villa, and in the second half he put in a performance in 45 minutes that Florian Wirtz has never done before for Liverpool.
“I've seen a goal Emiliano Buendia scored for Aston Villa at Tottenham. Again, these players aren't going to get over £100m, or £120m, but they're still giving their clubs bits every few weeks.”
Carragher’s conclusion is ruthless.
“Wirtz wouldn't be in my Liverpool team. Manchester City at home, for me, he can't be in the team.”
Iraola’s big calls – and the next one
If there is one thing Carragher likes about Iraola so far, it is his willingness to ignore reputations and contracts.
“The things I've liked so far about Iraola, he's had the courage to make big decisions. Ryan Gravenberch has just signed a hefty contract on a five-year deal on massive money, because they thought him and Szoboszlai were going to be the future of the midfield going forward. He's not playing.
“Now, I can imagine the guys at the top of the club looking at that, thinking we've just given him a hefty contract. But no, he's not playing.
“The full-back situation, he keeps changing the full-backs, he's dropped Jeremie Frimpong straight away. Milos Kerkez has been in and out. So he's made decisions.
“But sooner or later he's going to have to make a decision on Florian Wirtz, and, for me, I hope it's sooner. Not because I don't like Florian Wirtz, I'm desperate for the kid to do well. I just want Liverpool to win. That's it, basically.”
Klopp, Germany and a lifeline
For all the criticism, Carragher still sees one possible escape route for Wirtz: Jurgen Klopp.
The former Liverpool manager, now in charge of Germany, has called Wirtz up for the upcoming Nations League fixtures. The midfielder is in one of two squads named by Klopp and will get a short rest before potentially featuring in Germany’s final two games against Serbia and Greece.
“The one hope for Liverpool supporters now is Jurgen Klopp is the Germany manager,” Carragher said.
“Wirtz goes away with the Germany team for three weeks, and he's obviously one of the best players in Germany, that's how they see him. Can Jurgen Klopp sprinkle a bit of stardust on him in that position?
“Jurgen is one of the greatest managers in the world, we know that. And what he gets out of players is probably more than most managers because of the nature of his personality, and fingers crossed something can happen for him.”
The scenario is clear in Carragher’s mind. It is also, perhaps, Wirtz’s best shot at changing the story.
“There's a scenario there that Jurgen Klopp and Germany have a great international window, he gets loads of goals, assists and comes back on a high. Manchester City's the next game, he impacts that, all is forgotten, all is forgiven. There's a potential turnaround there.
“I would love that to happen, I'd love him to be the match-winner against Manchester City.”
The criticism is fierce, the doubts are real, and the clock is ticking. Wirtz now heads into an international break that might just decide whether he returns to Anfield as Liverpool’s problem – or Liverpool’s spark.
