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Hans Wirtz, the father of Liverpool star Florian, has opened up on how his son has been adapting to life in the Premier League following his $157 million (£116 million) move to Anfield this summer.
Wirtz is yet to score or assist in the Premier League but has shown his best form in the Champions League. Earlier this week, he impressed against his former manager, Xabi Alonso, who is now with Real Madrid.
And Wirtz Senior says while the 22-year-old is still getting used to the demands of playing in England rather than Germany, he is content enough with how things are progressing at the moment.
"My thought from the very beginning was to wait and see how the first 10 league games went," Hans told the German outlet BILD. "We and Florian are perfectly happy with that.
"The incredible speed, the back and forth, that was very impressive for the first few games. The distances covered and the speed were significantly greater.
"The style of play is sometimes enormously different because it doesn't seem as organized, but rather more focused on pace."
Wirtz could start against Manchester City this weekend as Liverpool looks to close the gap on Arsenal in the standings.
"I think the league table clearly shows that there's still room for improvement in this football machine," Hans said.
"But the mechanics will sort that out. I hope he's such a good player that he can adapt to the demands there and that he enjoys it just as much as he did in the Bundesliga.
"It was important [before the transfer happened] that Arne Slot spoke with Florian and explained his value to him. He showed how he envisioned the collaboration, and that convinced Florian."
Slot also spoke about Wirtz during his press conference earlier today after his positive midweek showing.
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"Florian can play in more than only one position," Slot said. "He can play off the left, which he did almost all the time in Leverkusen when Alonso came and introduced his 3-4-3 system.
"Before, he played as a 10 in a 4-3-3. It is more about getting him positions where he is good, rather than being focused on 'Is he a 10, is he an 11, is he an eight?'"
Liverpool.com says: There has never been any doubt about Wirtz's ability. The German is a superstar and you can see how technically gifted he is just from watching him for a few minutes.
In time, when he is further adjusted to life in English soccer, he will show his full potential. He looked very impressive against Real Madrid in the Champions League, where the balance of the team was much better as he drifted in from the left.
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