01 Oct 2026 22:14:28
Ed666, Wirtz scored tonight ?.
{Ed666's Note - Cheeky Fecker ??
02 Oct 2026 07:09:48
Klopp uses a different formation than Iriola. He has Wirtz playing a Bobby Firmino false nine in a 4-3-3. Iriola has Wirtz stuck between a two man midfield pivot and Isak as the nine. That puts Wirtz in the midst of a crowd. Defenders push him off the ball and force him into giveaways. Looks like Klopp has him playing where he belongs. Klopp also used Diogo this way as a false nine - brilliantly.
We need to do the same. been saying it for a long while.
02 Oct 2026 08:01:54
But that worked fine because we had Salah and Mane thriving off Firmino. At this stage we have no-one on the wings capable of giving the same numbers as those two did.
Also interesting is that down below someone claims that Wirtz was playing off the left of a 4-3-3 so can someone actually confirm that there there were 2 Wirtz on the pitch last night?
02 Oct 2026 09:18:56
Wirtz generally starts on the left for Germany and Leverkusen but essentially, he has a free role around the pitch. That is his best position imo and he played his best for us while doing that too.
{Ed025's Note - we are yet to see his "best" Drac..
02 Oct 2026 09:24:37
He didn't start off the left he was the left hand CM of a 3 Gnabry, Wolte, Scherhant played upfront Pav and Bisch did the leg work to give him the freedom needed to push up and play with Wolte.
02 Oct 2026 10:02:28
Klopp did not play him as a false 9 he played Woltemade as a 9 with Wirtz on the left of the midfield 3 with licence to roam.
So essentially the same way Iraola plays him.
02 Oct 2026 10:35:57
@The_thin based on the highlights I saw, Woltemade played the 9 role with Wirtz playing in the free role behind him with runners behind him (Wirtz) in midfield.
That is the way Iraola actually plays at least on paper, as @Rios said. Also, we have seen Wirtz in the false 9 role and he was completely lost there. Personally, I don't want to see that again.
As said above, I didn't see the whole game but Flo scored a good goal and in fact, was heavily involved in the first goal as his dribbling and quick shot that hit the post led to a tap in.
02 Oct 2026 10:39:23
Until we get a couple more passers into the first team, our forward line will continue to underperform against the sums spent on it. We can keep blaming everyone - the crop of midfielders and fullbacks we have, the wide players and forwards that are supposed to be making the runs in behind, the coaches or Florian Wirtz himself. It won't change anything until either the existing players become better passer or we bring in a couple. I don't really mind if it is solved through changing midfielders or fullbacks - or even a bit of both. It just needs solving.
We keep going on about Mo and Sadio and their output but they also had players behind them that could progress the ball quickly - Trent and Virg are unicorns, Robbo was very forward thinking with his passes, Fabinho and Hendo could be very direct too if the pass was on. And of course Bobby was the king of making the most of the touches he got.
I watch our current mids and fullbacks - they can run about until the cows come home but all seem to want several touches of the ball or carry it before passing it on, when one quick pass would be more effective.
To be fair, Macca has been better this season. I think Trey has it in his locker too. We've no passers in our fullback ranks at all. Having a bit more of it will help everything massively.
And to complete my unplanned rant - we really could use one or two more left footers in the squad!
02 Oct 2026 11:04:43
I's simple. Jurgen is the best manager we've had in 30 odd years. A generational talent. He rates Florian Wirtz. I agree with him.
02 Oct 2026 11:01:39
Wirtz was playing in the midfield in that 433 last night, not as a false 9, but if you watched the game, he was really just playing as a 10 who favoured that half space just off to the left, so technically there was still a 2 man midfield behind him. No point in trying to make out like it was the minor technical differences of the setup that made Wirtz a better player, they were playing Serbia after all, the difference in quality between that and the PL is massive, not to mention time on the ball, physicality, pressure, etc.
Wirtz played great because the opposition was trash, he had tonnes of space and the confidence of playing with his countrymen under zero pressure, should serve as a nice confidence booster for him, there's nothing more to take away from it. He has the same positional freedom when playing at Anfield, but he doesn't get the same time or space.
02 Oct 2026 12:24:32
Actually, I have irrefutable evidence that it was 0-0.
02 Oct 2026 12:29:17
Oops did I start something ?.
02 Oct 2026 13:35:21
It's really encouraging to see how many pro licence standard posters we have on here, in case it doesn't work out with AI, or should that be SI now? We're in good hands whichever way we look at it?.
02 Oct 2026 13:53:23
Very good posts there, Chewy and Pelican. I agree with all the angles and approaches to the topic.
Hopefully and despite the diverse factors and contexts surrounding the game (the opponent, more space, etc.), Wirtz can get some confidence from his perf. which will help him moving forward.
Flo needs to realise that he is still a top talent who is just going thru a rough time and that he needs to be bold and front-footed in his play and his decision-making in PL games.
Take control of the things over the stuff he actually has control of, essentially.
{Ed025's Note - him being out of form for 14 months does not exactly fill me with much confidence mate..
02 Oct 2026 14:25:07
Flo must've been Andy Capp'd by his Liverpool teammates.
02 Oct 2026 07:00:46
Gonna be a long day for you Ed666.
By the way. that Wirtz is so crap. we should cash in.
{Ed666's Note - I can’t catch a break mate ?
02 Oct 2026 15:12:14
Like it Rigsby ?.
02 Oct 2026 15:45:15
Big difference between international football & Premier League. At the moment he is not hacking it in the epl. Hopefully he will.