Liverpool are off and running in the 2025/26 Premier League season after an entertaining win over Bournemouth on Friday night.
The Reds did not make life easy for themselves on an emotional night which saw Anfield pay its respects to Diogo Jota and his brother Andre Silva.
Despite this being the first game of what will be a long campaign, Liverpool looked tired and lethargic as they surrendered a two goal lead to the Cherries.
They deserve credit for coming back and scoring two late goals, but there were some concerning signs for Arne Slot throughout the 90 minutes.
One of those perhaps came from a quiet Premier League debut for new record signing Florian Wirtz.
Wirtz has lit up pre-season for Liverpool, bringing his special brand of awareness, vision and creativity to the Reds. But according to former Liverpool full-back Steve Nicol, this was nowhere to be seen against Bournemouth.
Photo by Liverpool FC/Liverpool FC via Getty ImagesFlorian Wirtz still finding his position at Liverpool
Nicol is well-known to be an often harsh critic during his role as a pundit for ESPN.
And the Liverpool legend did not hold back when delivering his assessment on Wirtz’s first ever performance in the English top division.
“I thought he was pretty average, to be honest,” Nicol insisted. “I think he probably passed the ball to a blue jersey more than he did a red jersey. I think most things he did he was not convincing in what he was trying to do. There was no real pace about him and he was kind of floating around as if he wasn’t sure where he should be to get the ball.
“At the end of the day, that takes time. You can’t just throw three or four or five players together and think they’re going to understand what everybody is looking for. But I think he’s the obvious one who is looking and searching to figure out what he should be doing.”
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“Really what he should be doing is getting the ball in the final third,” Nicol added. “That’s where he should be on the ball. But he doesn’t seem to be getting it in the final third and when he’s coming short he’s not doing enough with it.
“They’ve got to figure out how to use this guy’s ability because there’s no question he can play. He’s just got to get in the right position, with the right balls and he then has to play the right passes.”
Ryan Gravenberch would help Wirtz settle
Although Nicol is not necessarily wrong in his assessment of Wirtz, he does also offer some explanation for why things may have been tricky.
According to the pundit, the absence of Ryan Gravenberch from the Liverpool midfield meant the Reds – and Wirtz – looked less solid in the middle of the pitch.
“Wirtz being one of the three in the middle with no Gravenberch, that’s a clear problem,” said Nicol. “Mac Allister can probably do a better job than he did, he’s not 100 per cent fit.
“But without Gravenberch and then Wirtz being one of those three, he gives you nothing defensively. That’s not why he’s there, but if you’re going to play him in that three you’re going to have to have somebody who’s really solid, who’s going to be in front of that back line and who’s going to stop the second goal from Semenyo.”
Having signed for a British record transfer fee, it perhaps was an underwhelming entrance for Wirtz. But there are enough signs that when it does click for him, he is going to be impossible to stop.