Bayern chief strikes again as three factors debunk Arne Slot’s ‘broken promises’ to ‘poor’ Florian Wirtz | OneFootball

We smell bulls*t as Liverpool head coach Arne Slot has been accused of “breaking” two “promises” to £126m summer signing Florian Wirtz…

Wirtz has had a rough ol’ time since joining Liverpool from Bayer Leverkusen in the summer, as the former British record signing has had a chastening few months getting accustomed to Premier League life.

The £126m star has impressed in fleeting moments for Liverpool, though he has struggled with the physicality of the Premier League and has rightly been taken out of the firing line by Slot.

Wirtz has generally produced his best football in more comfortable surroundings in the Champions League, though there was evidence of the Germany international finding his feet in the Premier League against a charitable West Ham side on Sunday.

The 22-year-old arguably produced his best solo performance to date at the weekend, with his display against the Hammers potentially spelling an end to Mohamed Salah’s time as an ever-present for Liverpool.

The justified early-season criticism for Wirtz has come with the caveat that he will inevitably come good for Liverpool and that he will eventually prove to be a fantastic signing, because he’s too gifted for that not to be the result.

And Bayern Munich are clearly still rueing missing out on Wirtz in the summer, with Liverpool pulling off a coup to beat the Bundesliga giants and Manchester City to secure his services.

Bayern Munich have had a great few months on the pitch as they were unbeaten in the Bundesliga and Champions League before facing Arsenal last week, but they have had a humbling experience behind the scenes.

Several outspoken club chiefs, particularly honorary president Uli Hoeness, have not taken too kindly to them missing out on Wirtz, while claims that Newcastle United overpaid to beat Bayern to Nick Woltemade are proving equally laughable.

And Hoeness has struck again with an assessment on Wirtz’s start to life at Liverpool after Slot “broke” two “promises”.

“Slot promised Wirtz something that he’s now clearly not keeping: build a new team around him with the number 10 shirt,” Hoeness claimed.

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“That was rubbish. He got the number 7 shirt, and the new team is clearly not playing around Florian Wirtz.”

He added: “They have spent 500 million euros and are playing a catastrophic season…

“In my opinion, that’s because you only have superstars. You only have chiefs and no workers.

“Poor Florian Wirtz, he doesn’t get the ball at all because Salah and Szoboszlai and what they’re all called want to play with their own ball.”

It is quite easy to debunk this “broken promises” allegation from Hoeness, who is renowned for making outlandish statements that are sparked by bitterness at players preferring other clubs to Bayern Munich.

This means his statements should be taken with a pinch of salt, especially in this case, as he realistically was not privy to the negotiations between Wirtz and Liverpool.

Also, the two “broken promises” in question are not feasible and would not be made so brazenly by Slot.

Firstly, the N0.10 shirt is currently occupied by Alexis Mac Allister, so it was never going to be available, and the No.7 is a pretty good compromise.

Then, Liverpool and Slot were never likely to “build around” Wirtz right away, as he was always going to need some time to adapt to a new league, though his most recent display alongside fellow summer signing Alexander Isak suggests that this may be the plan in the coming months.