Florian Wirtz made the wrong call rejecting Man City: Struggling German can still become a Liverpool star - but Etihad switch would have made Premier League adaptation far easier

There were many reasons why Wirtz picked Liverpool over City and Bayern. He was struck by both the quality of Arne Slot's side - and the club’s facilities - after Leverkusen were routed by the Reds in last season's Champions League. He was also blown away by the stunning scenes of celebration on Merseyside that followed Liverpool's record-equalling 20th English title triumph in May. "I just wanted to be a part of this team," he told the club's official website.

What really won Wirtz over, though, was the promise of not just becoming a part of Slot's side, but being absolutely integral to it. According to Liverpool sources, it was the Dutchman's detailed plan for Wirtz that effectively sealed the deal.

Whereas Wirtz reportedly had doubts over whether he would play regularly as a No.10 at Bayern because of the presence of Jamal Musiala at the Allianz Arena, he would literally be central to attacking strategy at Anfield, deployed in his preferred position just behind the centre-forward. However, Slot's plan for Wirtz appears to have already been scrapped - or at least shelved - because of Liverpool's incredibly erratic form.

Wirtz started Liverpool's first four games of their 2025-26 Premier League campaign - and in his familiar attacking midfield role. However, he wasn't involved in a single goal during that winning run, which inevitably led to online mockery and intense media scrutiny of his transfer fee.

So, when the Reds' results took a serious turn for the worse, Wirtz became something of a scapegoat, even though his obvious struggles with the pace of the Premier League had absolutely nothing to do with his team's far more costly inability to deal with set-pieces.

"I think Wirtz actually damages the balance of Liverpool and how they play," former Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney said on his BBC podcast. "He's a top player and I'm sure he will get better - but he's had a slow start and I think there's no denying that. I've seen players come into this league and it takes time.

"But it's not the price tag. It's not the player or his ability. I just don't see where he fits into what Liverpool do in that [4-3-3] system. Is he a third midfield player? For me, no, he's more of an attacking player. So, if I have to choose between him and [Dominik] Szoboszlai, then I choose Szoboszlai."

Worryingly for Wirtz, Slot is now favouring the Hungarian too.

Amid all of the excitement surrounding Liverpool's unprecedented summer of spending, Szoboszlai became something of an after-thought. The versatile No.8 may have played a major role in last season's title triumph with his remarkable work-rate, but the presumption was that Wirtz would take his spot in Slot's starting line-up.

The German was widely regarded as a massive - and necessary - upgrade on Szoboszlai, whose end product has been repeatedly criticised by the likes of Jamie Carragher. Even Slot stated earlier this year that he wanted more goals and assists from Szoboszlai.

In that context, Liverpool's willingness to push the boat out to sign Wirtz made perfect sense. He was the most coveted No.10 on the market, a young man who had already proven himself highly adept at both scoring and creating goals.

However, while Wirtz has yet to get off the mark for his new club, Szoboszlai has already scored twice, including a fantastic free-kick winner against Arsenal. Even more surprisingly, Szoboszlai, Liverpool's undisputed player of the season so far, also has twice as many assists (four) as Wirtz in all competitions.

When one also considers that the Hungary captain played a starring role in last season's win over City at the Etihad, there appears little doubt that Slot will field his trusted title-winning trio of Szoboszlai, Ryan Gravenberch and Alexis Mac Allister on Sunday - particularly as they laid the foundation for the wins over Aston Villa and Real Madrid that arrested the Reds' recent slide.

So, is Rooney right, then? Is there no room for Wirtz in Liverpool's strongest side? And if so, should he have pushed to join City despite his alleged doubts over Pep Guardiola's long-term future at the club?

It's been widely reported that Guardiola identified Wirtz as the ideal replacement for Kevin De Bruyne, whose contract expired at the end of the 2024-25 campaign, and it would be easy to understand why. Wirtz, with his mix of industry and innovation, fits the profile for Pep’s perfect 10. So, why didn't the German end up at the Etihad?

Well, that very much depends on who you talk to, because there are those that claim that City felt that Wirtz was overpriced at £100 million ($130m), while others insist that the player walked away from the deal because Guardiola could offer no guarantee that he'd extend his stay in Manchester beyond 2027.

If Wirtz really did reject City, it is possible that he's regretting that decision now, given he probably would have immediately settled into one of the two attacking midfield roles in Guardiola's 4-1-4-1 formation. After all, Rayan Cherki is already enjoying a more productive start to his Premier League career than Wirtz. Despite being hindered by a thigh problem that ruled him out of action for more than a month, the Frenchman has already racked up eight direct goal involvements since signing for City just before the Club World Cup.

As plenty of critics have been quick to point out, Liverpool were also considering signing Cherki if their audacious move for Wirtz failed to come off - and it would certainly be hard to argue against the £30m ($42m) signing from Lyon looking like a better-value buy right now.

However, former City and Germany ace Ilkay Gundogan has a point when he says that too much attention is being placed upon Wirtz's price tag.

"It's not Flo's fault that he cost so much," the Galatasaray midfielder told Bild. "I would also like to see a bit more in-depth analysis here - and not just focus on the bare assists and goals. Anyone who doesn't see Flo's outstanding quality really doesn't understand much about football. To call him a transfer flop already is completely over the top."

And Gundogan is right, because it's not as if Wirtz is playing badly. As ex-Liverpool midfielder Danny Murphy told GOAL, "I think he has been a bit unlucky because he has made a lot of chances that haven’t been converted. Sometimes if some of those go your way - [Mohamed] Salah missed a sitter against Everton, [Jeremie] Frimpong missed a sitter against Atletico, a couple went begging at Galatasaray, while there was the beautiful flick at Chelsea that Salah mis-hit on his right foot. All of a sudden the narrative changes a little bit if a few of those go in, or it’s not as intense.”

It's obviously not a good look for Wirtz that he didn't start Liverpool's two most impressive Premier League performances of the season so far, against Everton and Aston Villa. However, as Slot has been at pains to point out, Wirtz was always going to need time to adapt to the unrivalled physicality and intensity of the Premier League.

It's certainly no coincidence that his most effective displays have come in the Champions League, where no player has created more chances than Wirtz (16). Indeed, he was excellent in the midweek win over Madrid. As well as fashioning five goal-scoring opportunities - more than anyone else on the pitch - he also topped the chart for possession won in the final third, underlining just how important he is likely to become to Liverpool's pressing game.

Of course, the mere fact that Wirtz, a £100m signing, might not start against City is unquestionably a reflection of his difficulties adapting to English football. There's simply no getting away from the fact that, apart from maybe the second half of the 1-0 win over Arsenal, he's just not made the kind of impact on the Premier League that everyone anticipated.

One also cannot help but wonder when - and indeed if - Slot will put Wirtz back into the No.10 position, because if he does play at the Etihad, it will almost certainly be on the left wing in place of Cody Gakpo. Is there a chance, then, that we might not see the very best of Wirtz until Mohamed Salah moves on and Slot has more freedom to tweak his formation to accommodate not only Liverpool's new No.7 but also Hugo Ekitike and Alexander Isak in the same side?

However, the idea that Wirtz won't adapt - and subsequently shine - at Anfield feels like wishful thinking on the part of Liverpool's rivals. He's simply too good to fail. There's a reason why City and Bayern wanted him too, and why Alonso would have loved to have brought him with him to the Bernabeu.

As the Spaniard said earlier this week, it's "just a matter of time" before Wirtz proves his worth - because the superstar potential is still there. Those that have followed his career closely are in no doubt that a player Jurgen Klopp has described as “once-in-a-century talent” will come good for Liverpool.

"He will be unbelievable, trust me," Dimitar Berbatov told Rio Ferdinand on his former Manchester United team-mate’s podcast. "I’m sure that everybody [at Liverpool] sees his quality, and they’ll give him that time that he needs to fit into the team. And I guarantee you, he’s going to be a success. The way he sees football, how he looks for the space, how he knows how to position himself, the touches on the ball, the improvisation, the eye for the pass and for the goals.

"Of course, someone can argue that his physique is not that great for the Premier League. But then you can easily see the great players of his position, like [Luka] Modric, also the same build. Modric. F*cking monster! So just give Wirtz time."

Because the goals and assists will come. They're just taking a little longer at Slot's Liverpool than they probably would have done at Guardiola's City.

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