Liverpool star 'not pulling his weight' as Arne Slot forced to face awkward reality

Liverpool boss Arne Slot still has to make some accommodation to fit Florian Wirtz fully into his side for the future, with an awkward reality hitting the manager over his star summer signing.

Arne Slot has one difficult reality to deal with at Liverpool(Image: (Photo by Catherine Ivill - AMA/Getty Images))

Liverpool star Florian Wirtz has come under fire once again as the playmaker has been accused of "not pulling his weight" out of possession for the Reds, following his side's defeat to PSG in the Champions League quarter-finals.

The 22-year-old was unable to help Arne Slot in turning around a two-goal deficit from the first leg, with very few chances to show for the quality that he is thought to have. It was quality that warranted a $158million fee paid by Liverpool, but with that yet to show in the biggest moments, there are question marks over the decision for both his output in an attacking sense and the desire in the defensive aspect of the game.

In the second leg clash with PSG in particular, Wirtz was dug out for his lack of impact off the ball, as well as on it, with former England star Andros Townsend discussing the attacking midfielder.

He told BBC Radio 5 Live: "I think the problem is Arne Slot was expecting this season to have more possession and more domination, so you can get Florian Wirtz more into the game.

"That has not worked out the way he hoped. Wirtz is on the fringes, and he is not pulling his weight out of possession."

Wirtz has 44 appearances to his name this season for Liverpool, with six goals and ten assists so far, and while there have been times that he has grown in stature and importance, that run was disrupted by injury.

It underlines the awkward reality that Slot must face, with Liverpool's summer transfer plans not meeting the expectations that were set out for how the season would play.

Florian Wirtz has struggled in his first season at Liverpool since his record transfer switch(Image: (Photo by Chris Brunskill/Fantasista/Getty Images))

While there was an expectation that teams would sit in and the likes of Wirtz, Alexander Isak, and Hugo Ekitike would help unpick low block defences, the opposite has often been true.

Liverpool's team has been soft at the core, with opposition teams finding it easy to strike at the backline with little to no resistance at all.

That confidence has been clear for teams up and down the country, who have made it tough for the Reds to play in the way they want to, putting more emphasis on their need to improve the off-the-ball structure than their on-ball quality.

That in itself leaves a difficult question for Slot and the board in how the team is rebuilt in the upcoming summer transfer window, with plenty of work needed across the squad to fill clear gaps.

For now, the task at hand is for the manager to give himself the best chance possible of having a strong hand in the market by finishing in the Champions League.

Failure to do so would not only weaken Liverpool's ability to enter the market for transfers, due to the gulf in revenue between the Champions League and other European competition, but it could cost him his job.

"It is minimum standard for Liverpool to play Champions League," Liverpool defender Ibrahima Konate said to TNT Sports after the defeat to PSG in midweek.

Florian Wirtz has failed to live up to the price tag so far(Image: MI News/NurPhoto)

"We have six games left and we have to give all in those six games."

While Ekitike will be out for a long time through an expected Achilles injury, Slot will be hoping his big-money signings can pull their weight in the final weeks of the season.

But many will also be thinking about the bigger picture and what this season means for Liverpool going forward, and the huge decisions that await them.