Will Liverpool’s high-priced signings follow in Alexander Isak’s footsteps? As a reminder, the Swedish striker was snatched from Newcastle in exchange for €145 million. Unfortunately for him, his first season with the Reds had been an ordeal with 4 small goals scored in 22 matches and a year marked by a long absence (end of December 2025-end of March 2026) after a fractured fibula. This season, a change of scenery. After 4 goals scored in 5 Premier League matches, Isak has finally taken on the role of number 1 striker for the Mersey club, while awaiting the return of Hugo Ekitike.
A recruit at €125 million who does not break through
A message of hope for Bradley Barcola, recruited for €140 million (bonus included), who has still not opened his goals and assists counters for the Mersey club. There is another who hopes to experience the same success as Isak, that is Florian Wirtz. With Isak, the 23-year-old German attacking midfielder was the other star recruit of the Reds’ 2025 summer transfer window. Bought for €125 million, the former resident of Bayer Leverkusen was to be the new conductor of Liverpool. In vain. Last season, Wirtz was often used as a central midfielder (number 10) or left winger. He was one of Arne Slot’s starters (40 times in 49 matches), but he did not convince observers (7 goals and 10 assists in 49 matches).
This season, the German has changed coach, but he remains one of the players most used by Andoni Iraola (6 starts in as many matches). And today, many wonder why. Last August, Gary Neville already attacked the German forcefully after a draw at Newcastle (0-0). “I want to kick his ass!” » Yesterday, Liverpool won at Bournemouth (1-0) and are in sixth place in the Premier League standings, but Wirtz made a copy which caused a lot of talk. In the podcast he runs with Skysportsformer Red Jamie Carragher was very cash on number 7.
Cut to pieces by Carragher
“Wirtz was really mediocre again. It just sucks. Absolutely nothing is happening there. It was one of his worst performances I’ve ever seen from him in a Liverpool shirt, I was critical of him not having the numbers to back it up. But usually, when we look at Wirtz, he is precise and careful, he keeps the ball, there are things that we appreciate. He gets out of tricky situations where you would normally expect a player to lose the ball. But what worries me is that I don’t think Wirtz has been in bad form since arriving at Liverpool. In reality, I think what we see is just what it is. I was already worried about Wirtz about a year ago. Maybe it was a little premature to say it, but I didn’t. It was just a thought running through my head. I commentated on Liverpool’s away game at Burnley, and Liverpool won thanks to a late penalty from Mo Salah. And watching this match, I saw what I’ve been observing for 12 months: I don’t see how he could hurt the opponent. It’s just clean and neat. And in a way, the price for this type of player should be half of what Liverpool paid. The worrying thing for Wirtz today is that his performances so far, or what he has brought to Liverpool, have fallen far short of expectations. He was expected to lead Liverpool to another league title and qualification for the Champions League.he confided, before concluding.
“The gap he has to close to almost justify public expectations seems almost too great to me. He won’t be able to do it. Even if he improves a little and gets there, it still won’t be what Liverpool thought they were getting. And it’s not just Wirtz, it’s the domino effect. So, when he plays in the number 10 position, it means that Dominik Szoboszlai must play in central midfield. I don’t think Szoboszlai is a central midfielder, I really don’t. I think in the future Iraola will have a decision to make about this. Wirtz wouldn’t make my Liverpool team. » Will Iraola follow Carragher’s advice? Asked about his midfielder’s performance after the match won against the Cherries, the Spaniard tried to remain positive. “He started the match slowly, I agree. The first minute was quite intense and we weren’t quite in the game, especially in the midfield duels. After this first phase, I think we improved. Florian also helped us progress. In the second half, he played much better, he found better spaces to receive the ball and pivot. We probably didn’t find the finishing touch to score, but I think I’m much happier with the second half than the last. » Still, Iraola must be one of the only ones to have been.
