Liverpool’s Florian Wirtz unfazed by hefty price tag
The German said he just wants to play football and that it doesn't matter how much money the clubs pay between each other.
Liverpool’s record-breaking acquisition, Florian Wirtz, has declared that the hefty transfer fee won’t burden him, and he’s fully prepared for the physical demands of the Premier League. Regardless of the expectations placed on Florian Wirtz this season, they pale in comparison to the ambitious standards he has personally set.
In a publication by Paul Joyce in The Times newspaper, Ther German insists he will not be weighed down by a price tag that almost all at Liverpool hope will reach a British transfer record of £116 million.
Joyce continued, “He [Wirtz] believes there will be no drawn-out acclimatisation to English football, and is intent on showing his best form from the get-go, and feels he can stand up to any opponents looking to target him. Oh, and the former Bayer Leverkusen starlet makes no apologies for stressing that retaining the Premier League title is only one of the aims for Arne Slot’s side this term. Yet it is not what Wirtz says but rather what he does that will leave the biggest impression on Liverpool supporters over the coming months.”
“I am a player who needs freedom on the pitch, and the manager gives it to me,” Wirtz said. “Of course, I have to respect the position and the players around me, but I try to give my best on the pitch and find the right places. I have the freedom for this. “I came [to Liverpool] because I thought I could fit in this team [straight away] and I am enjoying playing with these players. Every time, it is getting a little bit better, so I am happy with how it is going. I’m really enjoying the first weeks.”
Settling into his new surroundings has been made easier for Florian Wirtz by having his close mate Jeremie Frimpong, who also joined the Reds from Leverkusen a month earlier.
“I have not played a match in the Premier League, but I am looking forward to it, and that is why I came. To be honest, I don’t know [how it will be]. There will be some differences to the German league, but that is also something I can learn and make me better, so I am really looking forward to it. “They tell me it’s more intense and more physical, every player is really strong, really fast. That is what everybody is telling me, and I’m aware of that.”
“I will try to find the right places to be and the right spaces to get the ball and to be dangerous and create chances,” said Wirtz.
Joyce also noted that, across the Premier League, there’s a growing consensus that Liverpool have unearthed a true talent in Florian Wirtz. One manager even hailed him as “sensational,” praising his fluid movement with enthusiasm. Yet, if opponents attempt to neutralize Wirtz by crowding him out, they risk opening up space for the likes of Mohamed Salah, Dominik Szoboszlai, Cody Gakpo, or Hugo Ekitike, whose promising early performances following a potential £79 million transfer from Eintracht Frankfurt have already sparked excitement.
The 22-year-old also shared his thoughts on his fellow new arrival, Hugo Ekitike, whom he had seen play and played against in the Bundesliga. “He is a really good player,” Wirtz said. “I enjoyed watching him at Frankfurt, and I was really happy that he decided to come to us. In the training sessions already, he went well, and also in the game, we had some combinations that were good. I am really happy that I can play with him.
“It is good that we have a few players who come at the same time, so we can connect a little bit and talk to each other about how we deal with it. That helps when you come to a new team.”
The former Bayer Leverkusen star said he is not looking at his price tag, but is fully focused on helping Liverpool retain the Premier League title, which he admits would be difficult but a dream.
“No, I don’t think about this [his fee],” he added. “I just want to play football, and how much money the clubs pay between each other, it doesn’t matter.
“The big challenge is to take the title again, and it is the most difficult thing, so I try just to create chances and also work against the ball because I can also run a lot, and I will try to bring this to the team. Then, with the ball, I hope I can make the team better and bring my teammates into better situations.”
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