Why Florian Wirtz could completely TRANSFORM Liverpool's attack

Judging by Liverpool’s results this season there would be no reason to change the team at all.

The Reds sit top of the Premier League and on the whole, the performances have supported what the tables say.

While the system has changed under new head coach Arne Slot, the performances of Mo Salah, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Virgil van Dijk - amongst others - remain as scintillating as ever, whilst Ryan Gravenberch and Ibrahima Konate represent those who have taken a noticeable step up under the Dutch coach.

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Rumours of significant squad turnover are rife, however, with Salah, Alexander-Arnold and Van Dijk out of contract at the end of the season. But it is not just in those positions, as a centre-forward replacement could be on the cards.

And links to Bayer Leverkusen’s attacking midfielder Florian Wirtz won’t go away either. Especially as Liverpool are set to take on Wirt'z side in the Champions League on Tuesday night.

Wirtz presents an interesting proposition as he exists in a position that Liverpool don’t really have currently in the team.

With that in mind, Anfield Watch, has decided to explore how Liverpool could change with Wirtz in the team should the rumoured £100m transfer happen.

Where does Florian Wirtz play?

Wirtz plays what traditionally would be called ‘attacking midfield’, not in the Maradona ‘dribble past five players and score’ mould but something more suiting the width of a modern system that Leverkusen play with.

Leverkusen have the ability to build attacks through both of their full-backs, Alex Grimaldo and Jeremie Frimpong, which is obviously reminiscent of Liverpool over the past near-decade. Because of this, Wirtz has developed an ability to find space off-the-ball, timing his runs well to capitalise effectively on ricochets and second balls.

And Leverkusen proved so potent last season because of Wirtz’s ability to ensure they can also play through the middle. He is an effective carrier of the ball, as well as a timely passer and ruthless finisher.

The role most similar in Liverpool’s current system is where Dominik Szoboszlai plays - the inside-right of midfield in a more advanced position than midfield partners Alexis Mac Allister and Gravenberch.

But Szoboszlai, for all his positive traits, has been a touch lacklustre this season. He has prioritised off-the-ball work, freeing up space for Salah and Trent on the right-hand side that has been naturally capitalised upon by the talismanic duo.

Yet it means that Szoboszlai himself doesn’t contribute much to the actual attacking phases of play on the ball. He only has one goal and two assists in 11 games in all competitions for Liverpool this season.

How would Wirtz contribute to Liverpool's attack?

This would change distinctly if Wirtz were to join as he constantly demands the ball. This season alone he is, according to FBRef, averaging 6.98 progressive carries per-90 to Szoboszlai’s 2.86, 7.62 progressive passes to Liverpool man’s 4 and 15.1 progressive receptions to his 4.

The latter indicates a difference in build-up to Liverpool, but is also indicative of how Wirtz both demands the ball and is trusted to be found with it to continue the attacking phase when receiving it. As a result, Liverpool’s build-up could interchange Gravenberch’s demonstrated ability to receive and carry with Wirtz’s as well, making pressing them in the middle a true nightmare to deal with.

Wirtz could also naturally sit further up the pitch to receive infield passes from any wide player or indeed directly from building-up centre-backs. This would naturally release him into the middle and attacking thirds, where he has averaged 7.78 shot-creating actions per 90 this season. Szoboszlai, by comparison, has 3.14.

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This is not a slandering of the Liverpool man, but indicates the difference in types of player being dealt with here. Whilst part of Szoboszlai’s game is to create from more central areas, Liverpool’s attacking output is primarily from the wide areas.

Wirtz's Defensive Work

As mentioned before, Szoboszlai pressing and space creation allow Liverpool’s right side the space to operate. However, even his defensive numbers don’t match up to Wirtz’s.

Wirtz averages 1.59 tackles and 0.79 interceptions per 90 at a 57.1% tackle success rate, whilst Szoboszlai gets 0.57 tackles and 0.43 interceptions per 90 at a 20% tackle success rate.

This suggests that, if Liverpool were to sign Wirtz, he could fill in the system off-the-ball whilst giving the side a truly effective central on-the-ball figure.

The downside here would be that Liverpool’s current main attacking options, particularly the wingers and full-backs, would be on the ball less than they currently are. Reducing the amount of touches Salah and Alexander-Arnold receive is never an advisable idea, but it would mean teams wouldn’t be able to put resources into stopping their attacking output without being punished by Wirtz’s ruthlessness with the ball at his feet.

Liverpool would be a fundamentally different proposition if they were to sign the German. Importantly, however, they would almost certainly be a better one.