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23rd October 2025
01:28pm BST
Liverpool's £116 million signing Florian Wirtz may have finally announced himself on the scene.
The 22-year-old Germany international played a starring role in his side's statement 5-1 victory over Eintracht Frankfurt on Wednesday night.
His return to form couldn't have come at a better time.
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On the back of four successive defeats, Arne Slot's side went into the Champions League clash under immense pressure.
That pressure was even greater for Wirtz, with the 2024 Bundesliga-winner having failed to register a single goal contribution in any of his last ten Liverpool games, before last night.
Playing from the right in a new-look Liverpool side, without the benched Mohamed Salah, Wirtz assisted goals for Cody Gakpo and Dominik Szoboszlai to help the Reds wrap up their 5-1 victory.
Wirtz's scintillating performance comes just a week after Jurgen Klopp described the former Bayer Leverkusen star as a "once-in-a-generation talent," adding "at some point he'll show that in every game again— just as he did at Leverkusen.""
Klopp's comments, when combined with the fact that Wirtz's best Liverpool showing came against a Bundesliga side, point to the the inevitable question: Why does the Liverpool man only show his best form against German opposition?
And even if Klopp does turn out to be correct, supporters are wondering how long they'll have to wait for the player to adapt to the Premier League.
It's a question that fans from across the football world have been debating ever since the full time whistle.
Many fans were quick to accuse Wirtz of only standing out due because of a perceived "Bundesliga" tax, pointing to the fact that the standard in the Premier League is considered to be more competitive than in Germany.
Others however, have suggested that Wirtz has "finally arrived."
There is some evidence to back up the "Bundesliga tax" argument.
One of the very best exports from the German league in the past decade, Heung-min Son, took years before he found his best form with Spurs.
Despite, scoring just four league in his first season with the north Londoners, Son went on to become one of the best players in the Premier League era for Tottenham.
Given enough time, it could turn out to be the same story for Wirtz.
Speaking after the game, the 22-year-old said: “I know that I can do much more I know that.
“I think the second half was really good, and from everyone else too, and so I'm satisfied that we’ve won today and that I finally have a goal involvement.”
It remains to be seen over the coming weeks whether Wirtz can begin the difficult task of fully adapting to opponents back in England.
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