Carragher Calls for Florian Wirtz to Be Benched Against Manchester City

LIVERPOOL, England — Jamie Carragher believes Liverpool manager Andoni Iraola may soon have to make a major decision on record signing Florian Wirtz, with Manchester City’s visit to Anfield looming on Oct. 11.

Wirtz joined Liverpool from Bayer Leverkusen in a £100 million transfer last summer. The 23-year-old Germany international has seven goals and nine assists in 55 competitive appearances, but his subdued offensive output has intensified debate over his place in the starting lineup.

Liverpool’s narrow 1-0 victory against Bournemouth brought that scrutiny into sharper focus. Alexander Isak scored the second-half winner by converting a right-flank cross from Cody Gakpo, while Wirtz was involved in the move after trying to meet Gakpo’s near-post delivery before Isak completed the finish.

According to tracking data from FotMob, Wirtz created three scoring opportunities against Bournemouth. That took his Premier League total to nine chances created this season, with only Dominik Szoboszlai and Gakpo producing more for Liverpool.

Despite those figures, Carragher said on “The Jamie Carragher Podcast” that the Bournemouth performance was among Wirtz’s most ineffective displays in a Liverpool uniform.

“I’ve been critical of the fact that he hasn’t got the numbers,” Carragher said. “Normally when you watch Wirtz, he’s neat and tidy, he keeps possession, there’s things that you like. He gets out of a tight situation where you’re normally expecting your player to lose the ball. But the reason I worry is, I don’t think Wirtz is in poor form since he came to Liverpool. I actually think what we’re seeing is what he is.”

Wirtz’s only direct goal contribution during the early stages of the current campaign came in a 2-2 draw against Nottingham Forest. Carragher said his concerns about the midfielder’s incisiveness had already emerged during Liverpool’s previous away fixture at Burnley, a match decided by a late Mohamed Salah penalty.

“When I was watching that game it was what I’ve seen for the last 12 months: I don’t see how he’s going to hurt you,” Carragher added. “The worry for Wirtz now is that his performances so far, or what he’s given Liverpool, is so low. Where we were expecting him was to take Liverpool to another league title, to take Liverpool to a Champions League. The gap he’s got to get to almost justify what people were expecting, I almost think is too big.”

Carragher compared Wirtz’s end product with that of other Premier League attacking midfielders, pointing to Everton’s Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, Nottingham Forest’s Morgan Gibbs-White and Aston Villa’s Emiliano Buendía as lower-profile players who have consistently supplied direct goal contributions for their clubs.

“Wirtz wouldn’t be in my Liverpool team,” Carragher said. “Manchester City at home, for me, he can’t be in the team.”

The former Liverpool defender also cited Iraola’s handling of other positions. Since taking charge, the manager has rotated his defensive flanks aggressively, with Jeremie Frimpong and Milos Kerkez moving in and out of the lineup. Ryan Gravenberch has also received limited playing time in midfield despite recently signing a five-year contract extension alongside Szoboszlai.

“The things I’ve liked so far about Iraola, he’s had the courage to make big decisions,” Carragher said. “Sooner or later he’s going to have to make a decision on Florian Wirtz, and, for me, I hope it’s sooner.”

Liverpool now faces a three-week international break, during which Wirtz will join the German national team managed by former Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp. Carragher said the break could give Wirtz an opportunity to reset before returning to Merseyside and preparing for Manchester City.

“The one hope for Liverpool supporters now is Jurgen Klopp is the Germany manager,” Carragher said. “There’s a scenario there that Jurgen Klopp and Germany have a great international window, he gets loads of goals, assists and comes back on a high. Manchester City’s the next game, he impacts that, all is forgotten, all is forgiven.”