LIVERPOOL midfielder Florian Wirtz finally came into his own against West Ham on Sunday.
Almost six months on from his £116.5million move to Liverpool, the German is finally starting to somewhat justify his eye-watering price tag.
His first 12 games in the Premier League were underwhelming – but he made it lucky 13 at the London Stadium as Liverpool clinched a 2-0 win over the Hammers.
Wirtz established himself as one of the stand-out players in his 76 minutes on the pitch.
And it came after head coach Arne Slot made some key tactical changes.
POSITION CHANGE
Wirtz has spent much of the season so far playing off either side, but against West Ham he lined up in the No10 position.
He also had support from Ryan Gravenberch, Dominik Szoboszlai and Alexis Mac Allister behind and around him, which proved to be hugely beneficial.
It meant that if he lost the ball, there would be others to close down the opposition and regain possession.
West Ham let him receive the ball with ease and play comfortably, which gave the attacking midfielder a major confidence boost.
USING THE SPACES
The midfielder has a history of drifting in and out of position.
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When starting on the left, Wirtz has been known to drift inside and attack from central positions.
However, that was restricted when he joined Liverpool due to the strength of the club’s midfield.
Starting him centrally meant that he was able to pull the strings from the key areas without having to worry too much about his defensive duties.
As a result, he played with more freedom and was able to give his best Prem display of the season.
PRECISION PASSING
Wirtz made 45 passes against West Ham on Sunday – and only three were unsuccessful.
It meant he had a successful pass rate of 93 per cent, a huge improvement on some of his previous games.
The German managed just 76 per cent against Brentford and 84 per cent against Crystal Palace in October.
Naturally, the boost in confidence aided by a lacklustre West Ham performance was beneficial.
He will have to get into a rhythm to make sure that his performance in east London was not a one-off.
But if he can keep it up, Wirtz will continue to be a huge asset to Slot and Liverpool – especially given his ability to break through a low block.
WHAT ABOUT SALAH?
The impressive performance from Wirtz coincided with the absence of club icon Mohamed Salah, who spent the full match on the bench.
The decision to leave Salah out of the starting line-up would have raised eyebrows last season, but his form this term has been underwhelming to say the least.
Despite his poor campaign so far, Slot is unlikely to continue benching Salah – especially because he is now estimated to be earning around £400,000-a-week, having penned a new two-year deal in April.
The Liverpool boss will likely have to find a way to balance the squad with both Salah and Wirtz in it, at least for the foreseeable future.
And given they also have the likes of Alexander Isak, Hugo Ekitike and Cody Gakpo on their books, it could be a huge challenge.
Former Premier League star Yakubu has urged Salah to leave Anfield at the earliest possible opportunity to join a Saudi Pro League club and earn even more cash.
Speaking to SportsCasting Bets, the 43-year-old said: “Everyone knows that Mo Salah is a very good player and he’s a legend in Liverpool.
“He’s scored goals for fun, he’s won the league and he’s been there for a decade now.
“Sometimes in football it is up and down and Salah has never found himself in this position. It’s hard for him now and Mo Salah would always score goals before.
“But in the Premier League age can catch up to you.
“When it comes to age, the Premier League is all about running.
“It’s a very tough league and I think this will be Mo Salah’s last season at Liverpool. He could move to the Saudi League.
“He’s done a lot for Liverpool and he will always be one of the best players to ever grace the Premier League.
“Everybody loves him in Egypt and everybody knows him in Africa.
“He might have signed a new contract but it might not be working how it used to when he was looking for the new contract.
“He has tried to give everything for Liverpool, but this is just football.
“One bad season doesn’t mean he’s a bad player. They just need to enjoy him and give him support.
“He’s done so much for the club and I wish him all the best if it is his last season in Liverpool.”
