Some of Florian Wirtz’s Germany team-mates appeared happier for the 22-year-old than they did for goalscorer Leroy Sane.
In the 36th minute, Sane scored Germany’s third goal in their 6-0 victory over Slovakia, but it was the assist from Wirtz that was the moment of both quality and joy that he has had little of in recent months.
Drifting inside from the left, just inside his own half, after a quick interchange with Nick Woltemade, he spotted Sane’s run and weighted a lofted pass perfectly into his path.
The reaction was almost identical five minutes later when Wirtz was aggressive out of possession, won the ball back and then crossed for Sane to finish.
It was a five-minute game-changing spell Liverpool know he is capable of, but are yet to experience in the Premier League.
The hope has to be that this version of Wirtz — the one playing with a freedom, a swagger and a confidence — is the one returning to Anfield.
In the five days before joining up with his national team, Wirtz experienced the volatility of opinion in England and the speed it can change. His performance against Real Madrid in Liverpool’s 1-0 victory was arguably his best this season. He followed that up with a performance on the periphery of a 3-0 defeat by Manchester City that drew strong criticism from pundits, including Gary Neville.
It was a microcosm of his Liverpool career so far. Impressive in the Champions League, off the pace in the Premier League.
Germany head coach Julian Nagelsmann’s defence of Wirtz at the beginning of the international break meant the conversation around his start at Liverpool continued. Any chance of a quieter international break, in which the former Bayer Leverkusen midfielder could get away from the glare that comes with playing in the Premier League and for Liverpool, quickly disappeared.
Nagelsmann’s comments were understandable. The Germany coach was trying to deflect the negativity being directed towards Wirtz on to others, presumably with the goal of getting the best version of Wirtz for the national side. His suggestion to reporters in a press conference last week that Wirtz’s Liverpool team-mates “help him out by scoring some of the chances he creates” might have bemused some at Anfield. But that is not Nagelsmann’s concern.
World Cup qualifying matches against Luxembourg and Slovakia presented ideal opportunities for Wirtz to build confidence ahead of a demanding and pivotal winter period at Liverpool.
Florian Wirtz carries the ball forward against Slovakia (Maja Hitij/Getty Images)
The midfielder has had very little continuity since dropping to the bench for Liverpool’s victory against Everton at the end of September. He’s been in and out of the team and played in a variety of positions. After back-to-back starts on the left wing for his club, Nagelsmann opted to continue that with Wirtz playing in a similar role in both fixtures for his country.
The midfielder does his best work on the left. It is there where he grew into one of the Bundesliga’s premier players under Xabi Alonso. It has continued to be where his creativity has shone at Liverpool.
His chance creation map shows a large portion has come from central and left sided areas.
Against Luxembourg he was involved without being hugely influential, although this pass to Sane began the move for Germany’s second goal.
Slovakia was a step up. He played the game on his terms and there was an energy in everything he did that wasn’t there in his previous performance.
Germany are missing the injured Kai Havertz and Jamal Musiala. A system incorporating two No 10’s — Wirtz and Musiala — has been Nagelsmann’s preferred set-up. Wirtz was given licence to roam from the left, but it had been taking the former longer than the latter to look comfortable in it.
Wirtz, evidently, takes time to adjust, even with his own national team.
“The whole club itself is not as stable this year as it was last year,” Nagelsmann said of Liverpool in a press conference ahead of last week’s Luxembourg game. “It’s much harder to slip into the team now.”
The problem for Wirtz is that when you are signed for a significant price tag to play as the No 10 — a role that is vital in Arne Slot’s system — and involves both breaking up a league-winning midfield and shifting the balance of the side, you can’t just ‘slip’ into a team. You are supposed to now be central, too.
That doesn’t always have to be through output. While Wirtz is struggling to adapt to the speed and physicality of the Premier League, his brain still works quicker than most.
The eye test when watching him for Germany demonstrates that. In both games, when he received possession, the ball was moved on to a team-mate in the blink of an eye. Players were close to him, connections formed over years and months obvious. It was slick and those around him were on the same page.
He is still building those relationships at Liverpool — and he is doing it from a different position. Time is required, but elite football is impatient.
Florian Wirtz is still looking for his best form at Liverpool (Alex Grimm/Getty Images)
There have been occasions when his team-mates have not supplied the finish to his set-up, but he is playing in a team where too many — including himself — are underperforming amid a collective lack of control. These are not conditions set up for Wirtz to thrive.
Germany were second best against Luxembourg in the first half of their 2-0 victory last week, and while Wirtz showed glimpses of quality he struggled to influence. It was a contrast to the first 45 minutes against Slovakia. Germany dominated. Wirtz dominated.
When domestic football returns, Liverpool have a fixture list that looks favourable on paper, playing three of the bottom five in their next four games. These are the kind of games Wirtz was purchased to thrive in.
He needs those around him to control the game, but, as he has shown for Germany in these two games, he needs to play his role in that too.
