Emile Heskey has warned that Liverpool cannot rebuild their entire structure around Florian Wirtz, even as the scrutiny on the £107m to £116million signing keeps growing. Wirtz has six Liverpool appearances and one assist this season, while his latest Germany spell has reopened the debate over how much freedom he should be given.
Heskey's line on Liverpool's structure
Speaking to liverpoolecho.co.uk, Heskey said: "Liverpool must figure out how to get the best out of him within the structure that the manager likes." He added: "So changing everything to suit one player is very tough, the balance of the team and the overall chemistry has to be prioritised."
That is the right starting point for the discussion. Wirtz has played 469 minutes for Liverpool this season and carries a 6.48 Premier League rating, which is a modest return for a player brought in for that kind of fee.
Heskey's wider point was even sharper when he compared the ask on Wirtz with the demands on the rest of the side. "If Iraola gave Wirtz that level of freedom, he would be changing his entire team structure for one player," he said, while also praising Jurgen Klopp's ability to get the best out of players. The implication is obvious enough, Liverpool can help Wirtz without turning the side into a one-man project.
Germany has offered a different version
The international break has given Wirtz a cleaner stage. Germany captaincy in the 0-0 draw with Greece and his goal against Serbia gave him a more confident run of games away from Liverpool, and that has fed the idea that his ceiling has not moved, only his surroundings have.
Dietmar Hamann has been more doubtful about the mood around the player at club level. He said he gets the impression Wirtz is not happy at Liverpool and added that the player does not look convinced at the moment. Stan Collymore has also been among the critics, although the harder numbers are still small enough to leave room for change.
Liverpool's injury list adds another wrinkle. Alexander Isak and Cody Gakpo both left their national teams with injuries, so Wirtz's role may become more important in the short term even if the structure around him does not shift much.
Liverpool face Manchester City on Sunday afternoon at 4.30pm, which is the next chance to see whether Wirtz stays in the same role or gets a little more freedom in a side still trying to settle.
Written by Jack Mercer with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 4 outlets. How we work →
