Liverpool Are Not Doing Florian Wirtz Any Favours

Liverpool are not playing to Florian Wirtz's strengths. Or those of many of their summer signings, come to think of it, but let's deal with the German first.

Which three words spring to mind when you think of Florian Wirtz? ‘Waste of money’ will be the immediate reaction of people whose opinion is not worth your time.

If that hot take is too extreme to carry any merit, it would certainly lift the mood around Liverpool if the 22-year-old started delivering goals or assists. As recently evaluated on here, a price tag of the size that brought him to Anfield outweighs what is a reasonable expectation for a Premier League rookie of his age.

Florian Wirtz's Struggles Should Have Been Expected

Back to our three Wirtz words. A wordcloud taken from analysis of the young German would have ‘between’, ‘the’ and ‘lines’ prominently displayed, for he does his best work in this somewhat random patch of pitch.

Searching his name with that phrase brings up numerous articles and videos with titles like ‘Florian Wirtz Masterclass’. Receiving the ball behind the opposition’s midfield but in front of their defence then finding a forward is what makes the former Leverkusen man tick.

Wirtz has been in such spaces in his new red shirt. A Sky Sports piece published early in the campaign which primarily highlighted his running power gave examples of his off-ball movement. He drags opposing players out of position to create space in which his teammates can either flourish or potentially find him with a pass.

A more recent article via the same source shared a troubling statistic. The issue is one of omission, with Wirtz not featuring in the Premier League’s top 10 players for times they were available to receive the ball between the lines.

It’s impossible to know Wirtz’s figure without access to the full data set. He wouldn’t be half way to second place even if he happens to be 11th man on the list, though, which is concerning given his ability in this field.

Investigating this will not be easy. There is no published statistics for passes received between the lines. It remains worth reviewing a few different numbers to see how this is hampering Liverpool. Solving this tactical issue could dissolve some of the attacking problems plaguing the team.