Florian Wirtz has been warned he will not last long at Liverpool if he does not start adapting quicker to the demands of English football after his summer move from Bayer Leverkusen
Florian Wirtz has been told ‘he’s done’ at Liverpool unless he begins settling into English football more rapidly. The German has endured a patchy beginning to his Anfield journey since arriving at the club in a transfer potentially worth £116m from Bayer Leverkusen during the summer.
The 22-year-old has managed three assists across 15 outings for Arne Slot’s squad so far, yet remains without a goal contribution in the Premier League.
The attacking midfielder has been relegated to the substitutes’ bench for recent encounters against Everton, Chelsea, Manchester United and Aston Villa in England’s top-flight, though has shone in the Champions League.
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Providing two assists versus Eintracht Frankfurt after being reinstated to the first team following Liverpool‘s defeat to Manchester United, he also stood out when recalled for the midweek triumph over Real Madrid on Tuesday evening, reports the Liverpool Echo.
Ex-Real Madrid and Inter Milan midfielder Wesley Sneijder has now commented on Wirtz’s inconsistent spell at Anfield, warning he won’t survive long in England unless he begins delivering greater influence in the Premier League.
“I always say this about players with the German or Dutch mentality. It is the same,” the Dutchman said. “You can play good in your own country but they can have problems adapting in different countries.
“The Dutch and the German players are like that and I see the same happening now with Florian Wirtz.
“He felt comfortable in Germany. He was in the right spot. Now he made a big step and that’s difficult because at big clubs you don’t have the time to adapt. You already need to be there.
“If you come to the club as a big star then you have to show them immediately why they signed you and if you don’t show them they don’t care for you.
“Wirtz is a big star in Germany but you have to be a big star on the pitch at Liverpool immediately and I felt like he had quite a problem in the beginning with this adaptation.
“Slowly, he is getting there but it needs to be faster and it needs to come quickly now, otherwise he’s done.”
Sneijder also dismissed recent criticism of Slot, insisting it has to stop despite Liverpool’s struggles last month. The Reds have won their last two matches against Aston Villa and Real Madrid, but had previously lost six of their last seven games as the pressure started to mount on the Liverpool head coach.
But having seen Slot lead the Reds to the Premier League title last season, Sneijder jumped to the defence of his compatriot.
“It’s funny. A couple of months ago he was the king of Liverpool,” he told AdventureGamers.com. “He was the coach to make you forget about all the previous coaches, even Jurgen Klopp.
“After four weeks they are saying he wants to turn Liverpool into Feyenoord, he’s not winning games in the last minute anymore. He’s out of luck.
“Come on. Stop this. He’s still a great coach. What he did there is something amazing in the first season.
“He has needed to adapt as well and he adapted very quickly and brought his own style to the club and to the team.”
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Sky Sports discounted Premier League and EFL package
Sky has slashed the price of its Essential TV and Sky Sports bundle ahead of the 2025/26 season, saving members £336 and offering more than 1,400 live matches across the Premier League, EFL and more.
Sky will show at least 215 live Premier League games next season, an increase of up to 100 more.
