Jamie Carragher has delivered a scathing assessment of Florian Wirtz after the Liverpool midfielder endured another subdued display in the 1-0 win over Bournemouth.
Alexander Isak’s second-half goal secured victory at the Vitality Stadium, but Wirtz struggled to influence the contest and completed only 70% of his passes. Only Isak recorded a lower accuracy among Liverpool’s starters.
Jamie Carragher questions Florian Wirtz’s Liverpool form
Carragher was critical of the 23-year-old during his Sky Sports commentary, saying: “Wirtz has been really poor again. It’s just nothing. Nothing is happening there at all.”
He expanded on his concerns afterwards on the Jamie Carragher Podcast, describing the performance as “one of the poorest I’ve ever seen him in a Liverpool shirt”.
Carragher acknowledged that Wirtz has previously offered qualities beyond goals and assists, but said the midfielder’s current displays had raised deeper questions.
“I’ve been critical of the fact that he hasn’t got the numbers,” he said. “But normally when you watch Wirtz, he’s neat and tidy, he keeps possession, there’s things that you like.”
He added: “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.”
The former Liverpool defender said he had been concerned about Wirtz as long as 12 months ago, although he admitted that it might have been too early to voice those doubts publicly.
The criticism carries added weight given Liverpool paid up to £116 million for the Germany international. Expectations have remained high since his move to Anfield, with the club requiring greater consistency and decisiveness from their expensive attacking midfielder.
Wirtz still created chances against Bournemouth
There were some encouraging elements to Wirtz’s performance despite his difficulties. Opta Analyst credited him with creating three chances, joint-most for Liverpool alongside Dominik Szoboszlai.
Bournemouth manager Andoni Iraola also defended the midfielder after the match. While acknowledging that Wirtz had started slowly, Iraola said he had helped Liverpool improve as the game progressed.
The statistics offered some evidence that Wirtz’s creativity has not disappeared, but his overall influence remained limited. Liverpool will want more decisive contributions from a player who arrived for a fee of up to £116 million.
Carragher’s criticism underlined the growing scrutiny around Wirtz, who must now show that his quiet display at Bournemouth was an isolated setback rather than a sign of a deeper problem.
