When the final whistle blew at the BayArena on April 14, 2024 to confirm Bayer Leverkusen’s status as Bundesliga champions, fans stormed the pitch in jubilation. A club that gained the unfortunate moniker of “Neverkusen” had finally removed it in grand style. Not only were they the ones to end Bayern Munich’s 11 year hold on the league crown, but Leverkusen remains the only side to go undefeated throughout a season.

For Florian Wirtz, the hattrick in the title clinching 5-0 route over Werder Bremen wasn’t just icing on the cake of what had been another dominant performance for Leverkusen. Rather, it was further evidence of how high his star had risen. Any worries about his development stalling from an ACL tear in March 2022 were put to rest as he ended up producing 11 goals and 11 assists in the Bundesliga during his age 20 season.

While Leverkusen couldn’t quite replicate the heights of 2023-24, finishing a distant second to Bayern Munich and also losing to them in the round of 16 in the Champions League, Wirtz himself had a near identical statistical campaign in 2024-25. Both seasons saw him rack up 22 goal contributions on essentially the same amount of appearances (32 in 23-24 vs 31 in 24-25). There were some dominant performances, including a goal and three assists vs Freiburg in December 2024. With transfer rumors swirling throughout the season, it became clearer with each passing day that Leverkusen’s prized young star wouldn’t be staying for much longer.

It turned out Liverpool were the winners of the race to acquire Wirtz’s signature in June 2025, to the tune of £100 million (and another £16m in add-ons). This was part of a Merseyside galacticos recruitment strategy full of blockbuster signings. Hopes were high that he’d be really good in the present, and great in the medium and long-term. At a time where the “Bundesliga Tax” was well known, Liverpool were banking on him having a robust skillset to avoid the label.

And yet, those memories of Wirtz dominating German football feel quite distant. To say that his time in English football has been a disappointment so far would be an understatement. He only has five goals and four assists in 38 Premier League appearances for Liverpool, to go along with a non-penalty goals and assists per 90 rate that’s less than half of what he produced with Leverkusen over his final two seasons.

Is this just a bump on the road, or a worrying long-term trend?

Under Xabi Alonso, Leverkusen experienced a fascinating transition in play style. His hiring in October 2022 was a gamble that he could both help rescue the German club from an early season crisis, while also having tactical upside to help mold them into a special side. The rest of 2022-23 saw them succeed primarily through counter attacking play. They only averaged 52.1% possession overall for the season, and a field tilt of 50.2%, according to Markstats. It was a lot of mid-block and counter to help them get to an eventual sixth place finish.

The following season was when the club truly ascended to a special level. In an era where German football has been criticized for a lack of control, what Leverkusen accomplished went against the grain. No team in the Bundesliga had a greater share of possession than their 62%, and their field tilt of 68.9% also led the league. Granular metrics like direct speed and passes per sequence also illustrated how much Leverkusen monopolized the ball.

It always felt like Leverkusen were able to find solutions on the ball through having a greater familiarity with each other, and some inspired transfer recruitment. They could either build through the three central defenders (Edmond Tapsoba, Jonathan Tah, Odilon Kossounou), or switch to a back four with Alejandro Grimaldo retreating into a left-back role rather than a wing-back. The left side had a formidable triangle of Grimaldo, Tapsoba, and Granit Xhaka to help progress forward. After succeeding at the end of his Arsenal tenure as an advanced midfielder, Xhaka’s return to playing a tempo setter role in 2023-24 ended up being very successful.

Wirtz’s value to Leverkusen came in large part from filling in the gaps like few others in Germany, and perhaps European football as a whole. If the double pivot of Xhaka and Exequiel Palacios are marked, Wirtz would drop into midfield as the spare option and receive with space to turn and go. Otherwise, his job was to try and find suitable angles for teammates to thread passes towards higher up the pitch. While he was most dangerous in the left halfspace, Wirtz would float from the left channel to right channel in the hopes of greasing the wheels of sequences of play.

If you were to list Wirtz’s greatest strength as a player, it’d likely be his off-ball work. When stationed higher up the pitch, he’d constantly attack the box. This could be through opportunistic third man runs, or finding soft spots in the opposing mid-block to attempt movements in behind. Given the litany of quality passers around him, it was easier for him to gamble with runs into space. The frequent box crashing saw him look for opportunities to be on the receiving end of cut-backs, or attack the far post for whipped deliveries. Wirtz’s shot map from his final two seasons is impressive, highlighting the danger he presented.

This isn’t to say that Wirtz was unimpressive as a passer. He was very proficient at finding teammates between the lines during earlier phases of play or against a lower defensive block. If he received it as the free man, the ball would be quickly passed forward unless there’s enough breathing room for him to carry the ball. He produced the type of connective tissue passes which helped quicken the pace of play. According to Statsbomb, Wirtz ranked 1st in the Bundesliga for line-breaking passes in the final third in 2023-24 and 2nd in 2024-25. In addition to being among the best in line-breaking passes in the final third, nobody could touch him when it came to one-twos.

Part of what helped Wirtz’s creative numbers was the litany of options at his disposal. Victor Boniface and Jonas Hofmann were great complimentary talents in part because of how much they’d stretch the opposition. You can say the same for Grimaldo and Jeremie Frimpong as wingbacks. According to Scout Lab, they were in the 99th and 97th percentile respectively for received expected threat per 90 relative to their position. Wirtz and Boniface worked well together, with the latter being a revelation in 2023-24. Depending on the moment, either could be a scorer or provider.

By the time Wirtz signed for Liverpool, the statistical argument in favor of the signing wasn’t hard to make. According to Scout Lab’s offensive VAEP (the attacking value created by passes, carries, shots, crosses, and take-ons), he was in the 96th percentile in 2023-24 and 94th in 2024-25 among qualified attacking midfielders and wingers in Europe’s big 5 Leagues. The combination of on-ball utility and off-ball prowess across various metrics put him in ultra rare company, which made it no surprise that he became Liverpool’s most expensive transfer at the time.

Just over a season into Wirtz’s time in Liverpool, it’s clear that the production hasn’t translated at the level commensurate with a £100m+ player. Whether it be his own shooting (shots per 90, non-penalty expected goals p90), or creating for others (open play expected assists, on-ball value from passes), the numbers across the board have noticeably declined.

Wirtz’s ability to find himself in advantageous spots has arguably suffered the least from moving to English football. Per Scout Lab, he was in the 85th percentile for progressive receptions and 89th in deep receptions last season. The box touches remained among the best at his position. On the ball, he still could thread teammates the ball in advanced positions. Via Statsbomb, last season saw him place fifth behind Rayan Cherki, Mohamed Salah, Jérémy Doku, and Martin Ødegaard for line-breaking passes in the final third. Gradient Sports had him fifth last season for the most passes breaking the defensive line in the PL. The decline in dynamic plays which lead to goals and assists has been the real sore spot.

Wirtz’s struggles last season weren’t just isolated to him, but rather reflective of what was going on at the team level. With the ball, Liverpool suffered from an inability to change the tempo of matches. There was an alarming amount of toothlessness during settled possession, including not putting enough pressure on the opposition backline. Whereas the best teams are able to go from slow to fast and manufacture artificial transitions, Liverpool struggled in this department.

For Wirtz himself, it’s fair to point out that the difference between the Premier League and Bundesliga could hinder a player of his skill-set. PL sides are on average more disciplined out of possession, so there’s less time and space for someone who primarily wants to receive between the lines and make stuff happen. As a result, there were considerably less instances of him being part of close combinations and profiting as the third man.

This would be fine if he was an electric talent on-ball from wide areas, but that wasn’t really the case. Even during his heyday in Germany, Wirtz looked a lot more ordinary when trying to create from outside the block. Despite the neat footwork he had, this wasn’t often utilized to help beat his marker in an isolated 1v1. Rather, If he was to receive on the flank, it’d be to try and combine with others to get into a more central area.

We’re only through five matches, but not much has changed for Wirtz. He’s still providing a respectable baseline of performance through being tidy on the ball and active off of it. For those who are still optimistic about him turning things around, they’d point to the performance versus Atlético Madrid. However, there’ve not been a ton of interplay with others that generated those dangerous moments which made him a star in Germany. There also remain the questions concerning how much value he produces when not stationed in the halfspaces.

It would not be outrageous to have some worries over whether Wirtz can show a notable uptick in performance. He’s on his second coach in successive years in Andoni Iraola, which doesn’t help in building confidence. The early months of the Spaniard’s time coaching Liverpool have included growing pains while he tries to have his gameplan translate to a big club. Despite the gargantuan money spent over the past few windows, the squad still looks unbalanced and in need of further change. Wirtz has shown the capacity to continue doing the little things at a high level, which helps make up for a bit of the value lost from the goals and assists drying up.

However, Wirtz has looked a lot more ordinary with Liverpool. He’s not been able to rise above having less opportunities between the lines. The questions concerning how he’d handle an uptick in physicality have not gone away, including moments where he’s getting shrugged off the ball and lacking the wherewithal to absorb contact. Compare him to someone like Cherki, and despite neither being roadrunners, the latter’s ability to ride challenges off the dribble has helped him perform at a much higher level (to go along with freakish two-footedness and a more daring pass selection). At the price Liverpool paid, you’d hope there was more undeniability to his game.

Part of Iraola’s challenge going forward will be trying to get more out of Wirtz. To do that will likely involve producing similar opportunities to the ones he had with Leverkusen. Within Alonso’s setup, the chameleon-like nature of his game was amplified by the advantageous team dynamics he could operate in. Having the license to float horizontally into different angles while knowing he has runners nearby who’ll attack space would be helpful for quick pass and move plays.

There’s still time for Wirtz to rebound and get closer to the player we saw a couple of years ago. Despite playing regular minutes since 17, 2026-27 represents only his age 23 season. Liverpool are building for the future, and want Wirtz to be a key figure in their next great team, so they’ll give him ample opportunities to figure things out. That said, given where English football is these days due to a greater emphasis on physicality and man-marking, perhaps it’s too unforgiving for a player who likes to glide in the opposition half. It’ll take some creativity for Liverpool to get the best out of Wirtz, or else he risks becoming the next cautionary tale of a prodigious Bundesliga talent who couldn’t make it work in the Premier League.

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