Wayne Rooney and Jamie Carragher disagree over Florian Wirtz transfer with Liverpool ‘questions’ claim

Florian Wirtz has been the subject of scrutiny during his time at Liverpool, with the former Bayer Leverkusen talisman failing to find the back of the net in the Premier League this season

Wayne Rooney and Jamie Carragher have disagreed about Florian Wirtz’s early performances at Liverpool. The Germany international has experienced a somewhat inconsistent beginning to his Anfield career after his high-profile summer switch from Bayer Leverkusen.

The Reds secured Wirtz in a deal initially valued at £100million following prolonged negotiations, with potential add-ons pushing the total fee to £116million. While the 21-year-old is yet to find the back of the net for his new club, he has contributed three assists so far.

With the November international break now underway, Wirtz has joined up with the Germany squad for the coming week. The Liverpool No.7 will be looking ahead to his return to Merseyside for the Premier League fixture against Nottingham Forest on November 22 following the international fixtures, reports the Liverpool Echo.

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During an appearance on The Overlap Fan Debate courtesy of Sky Bet, both Rooney and Carragher discussed Wirtz’s Liverpool career to date. The former Reds defender outlined his early reservations about the midfielder’s adaptation.

“I was worried about Florian Wirtz early on – not because he wasn’t amazing,” said Carragher. “When you pay that much money for someone, I just want to see a few glimpses of something to make me think, ‘I know he’s not the Bayer Leverkusen version yet, but I can see little things’.

“That was early on, and I’ve seen a few things – the backheel at Chelsea, he played well against Real Madrid.

“My worry about Wirtz is when people say things like he has to get used to his teammates, he’s played well in Europe, but it’s a different game to the Premier League.

“He played well at Frankfurt and against Real Madrid at home, but he’s found it really tough in the Premier League. I worry about him going forward – I get it’s early days, but I need to see something to keep me thinking that this will work.”

However, Rooney had a different opinion to Carragher, with the former Manchester United and Everton forward explaining why he remains optimistic that Wirtz will rediscover his best form at Liverpool.

“I like Wirtz coming off the left, how he’s done the last couple of games,” said Rooney.

“I know he hasn’t scored, but he has created a good number of chances which his teammates haven’t taken. I think he’ll be fine – players just take time to settle in.

“To go from Leverkusen to Liverpool, it’s a big jump. Liverpool is a massive club, and it’s not going well for the whole group at Liverpool at the minute.

“When that happens and you’re a new player and the money they’ve spent on him, and similar with Alexander Isak as well, there will be questions, but I think they’ll be fine.”

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