1 hour ago
44
Liverpool summer signing Florian Wirtz has responded to some advice sent his way by Jurgen Klopp — and insisted that things will click into gear for him soon after his $157 million (£116 million) transfer.
Klopp has recently suggested Wirtz must stay cool, be patient, and be allowed to adjust to his new surroundings. But the 22-year-old Germany star is keen to keep his focus on the task in hand, without too much interference from elsewhere.
"Yes, of course I would have liked to have scored a goal or collected a few points," Wirtz said. "But no matter what anyone says, I’m staying cool.
"I know what I’m capable of, and I also know that I’ll really bring it onto the pitch at some point, so I’m just staying cool. That’s a good reminder."
Wirtz scored 16 goals and assisted another 15 for Bayer Leverkusen last season. He has been unfortunate not to be credited with an assist so far in the Premier League with Liverpool having teed up the likes of Jeremie Frimpong and Mohamed Salah for big chances.
"I don’t want to hear it all the time, 'Give him time, give him time'. Instead, I just try to do better each time than before," he explained, in a conversation with Sky Germany.
"Sometimes there are just phases where things might not go your way. I haven’t had that very often in my career.
"Once I have gotten through it — that’s perhaps harsh, because I am not playing badly, I just haven’t got the scoring points yet — it will come at some point, and then everything will be fine.
"It’s no secret that I would like to have more so far, but I am patient, and as I just said, I know full well that I can play good football. Sooner or later, I am sure that things will return to normal."
This article contains affiliate links, we will receive a commission on any sales we generate from it. Learn more
Wirtz could be handed the chance to feature against Southampton later today in the Carabao Cup, with Arne Slot expected to make wholesale changes to his starting XI.
He came off the bench at the weekend in the Merseyside derby with Conor Bradley put at right-back and Dominik Szoboszlai moved into midfield.
Liverpool.com says: Wirtz is going to be a star at Liverpool. There is pressure with such a big price tag, but there is a reason that the Reds were prepared to spend so much to sign him.
Though he hasn't been scintillating so far, he has been solid. Criticism is inevitable, but he is more than good enough to prove it wrong and is clearly backing himself to do so quickly.
English (US) ·