What Florian Wirtz did after Germany training had one teammate lavishing praise on him | OneFootball

Florian Wirtz has come in for strong criticism since coming to the Premier League, but in his homeland it seems that he can do no wrong.

Ten games into his Liverpool career since joining from Bayer Leverkusen in a £116m summer transfer (including add-ons), the 22-year-old has yet to score and has supplied just one assist, with Jamie Carragher bluntly opining that the playmaker has ‘not been at the races‘ for Arne Slot’s side.

However, two former World Cup winners in Rudi Voller and Philipp Lahm have backed the Reds’ number 7 to silence his early critics in the UK, and he’s also been praised by one of his Germany teammates in recent days.

Wirtz has linked up with his national team ahead of their World Cup qualifying double header against Luxembourg on Friday and Northern Ireland next Monday, and he seems more determined than ever to prove a point.

Wirtz putting in extra hours after Germany training

German outlet Bild have reported that, after the end of team training on Tuesday, the Liverpool star put in additional shooting practice and an extra weights session, and those efforts haven’t gone unappreciated.

Nationalmannschaft teammate David Raum said of the 22-year-old: “The boy is hardworking and shows energy on and off the pitch. He was once again one of the longest players on the pitch today. We believe in the boy, we’re building him up here, but he knows what he’s capable of.”

(Photo by Sebastian Widmann/Getty Images)

Wirtz seems determined to silence his doubters!

Wirtz’s nine-figure price tag would inevitably bring a pressure to make an immediate impact at Liverpool, and although his goal contribution tally is low so far, Micah Richards rightly pointed out that the German has been creating plenty of chances that his teammates haven’t finished off.

Prior to last weekend’s Premier League games, the Reds’ number 7 had actually created the joint-most chances of any player in the division so far this term with 21 (Opta), so he hasn’t been anywhere near as peripheral as what some pundits might suggest.

While he seems to remain largely unappreciated in England, that certainly isn’t the case in Germany judging by what’s been said about him from his homeland in recent day, and he might welcome the pause in the club season to link up with his national team.

We suspect that a player of Wirtz’s standing has a thick skin, but he’ll probably be aware of some of the unflattering verdicts about him on these shores and use that as added motivation to prove his critics wrong, hence the additional effort on the training ground with his country.

Hopefully the 22-year-old can enjoy a fruitful few days away with his nation before returning to Liverpool and showing the kind of form which saw him score 16 goals and set up another 15 last season!