Florian Wirtz scored his first Liverpool goal against Wolves in a nervy 2-1 win. The midfielder says he was confident that he would score. Manager Arne Slot was also full of praise for the German international.
The roar inside Anfield told its own story. When Florian Wirtz finally slotted home Liverpool’s second against Wolves, the eruption mixed pure joy with palpable relief. For the club-record signing, a significant psychological barrier was broken.
After the match, manager Arne Slot acknowledged the weight that had lifted from his player’s shoulders. “I think I’m quite sure it was a relief for him,” Slot told reporters. “I could see with his reaction when he scored the goal and it was the same with his teammates, they were really happy for him.”
Slot defends Wirtz adaptation
Slot’s comments went beyond the simple statistic, defending Wirtz’s overall contribution during his early adaptation. “In football – rightly so, maybe – we mainly get judged on results and individuals mainly get judged on goals and assists,” he noted. “Sometimes we tend to forget what else there is to do during a game.”[smartframe_images_embed customer-id=”04742eb90cefa12a5e3ab9bae92c2b93″ image-id=”neimiQwBOrHi” style=”width: 100%; display: inline-flex; max-width: 3364px; aspect-ratio: 3364/2245;”]
The Dutch coach has consistently pointed to Wirtz’s underlying development, emphasizing improved fitness and integration into the team. That patience seems to be paying dividends.
“I think he’s had multiple good games for us but I also feel he gets better and better every single game he is playing for us,” Slot observed. “He gets fitter and fitter and was getting closer and closer to his first goal.”
Many more to come for Wirtz
While celebrating the milestone, Slot was clear that this is merely a beginning, not an endpoint. The goal itself, a cool finish from Hugo Ekitike’s pass, showcased the technical quality Liverpool invested in.[smartframe_images_embed customer-id=”04742eb90cefa12a5e3ab9bae92c2b93″ image-id=”neimfuy6uFGu” style=”width: 100%; display: inline-flex; max-width: 2818px; aspect-ratio: 2818/1879;”]
“Then it was not a surprise to me that he scored one today,” Slot added, “but he would probably be the first one to understand that one goal is not enough. He will score many more goals for us than only this one.”
Florian Wirtz, confident of his abilities
For his part, Wirtz echoed a quiet confidence that his moment would arrive. Speaking to Sky Sports, he said, “I was confident that I would score one day. I wanted to start earlier scoring and assisting but it was like this and I have to accept it. I just know that it will come and I try to keep going like that.”
Liverpool continue their revival as they climb to fourth in the table. Arne Slot has been missing some big names upfront as Aleksander Isak and Gakpo are out injured. Salah as well misses a significant number of games for his AFCON journey. Florian Wirtz’s first goal will be a relief for Liverpool and Arne Slot as he now looks to turn things around after a record summer transfer to the Merseyside club.
