World Cup winner wishes he could have Liverpool star; 'Incredible' | OneFootball

Spain's World Cup-winning head coach Luis de la Fuente wishes he could have one Liverpool star. He's far from alone in that.

Liverpool have not been at the top of their game for the last year and a bit. Far from it, in fact, as we've watched a title-winning team degrade into one that just doesn't quite work.

Go back to early 2025 and every club in the world wanted several Liverpool stars. Alisson Becker, Virgil van Dijk, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Alexis Mac Allister, Ryan Gravenberch and, above all, Mohamed Salah were all arguably the best in the world in their respective positions.

Last season? Things changed. There weren't really any Reds who had the world clamouring for them.

Or at least, not on form. Talent-wise, Liverpool still boast some of the very best players in world football, as shown by quotes from Spain's World Cup-winning head coach.

De la Fuente loves Florian Wirtz

Spain's Luis de la Fuente was asked this week whether he'd take any Germany star for his side. A side that just won the World Cup, of course.

There was a clear pick: Florian Wirtz. De la Fuente waxed lyrical about the Liverpool star, making it abundantly clear that he rates him exceptionally highly.

“[I'd have] Florian Wirtz! Incredible player," he said.

“Unfortunately, he doesn’t have a Spanish passport. I really like the way he plays."

It's not a great shock. Wirtz was one of the best-rated players in world football before moving to Liverpool, but the Reds have just failed to get the most out of him.

Of course, nearly everyone in the squad struggled last season and it certainly wasn't just a Wirtz problem. The same can be said now as Liverpool try to find their right mix under Andoni Iraola.

But there is no question that we haven't seen the best of Wirtz at Liverpool. We're still crossing our fingers that it will happen and there's plenty to go in the season for it to happen.

Because this is still a player who every top coach wants in their team. Wirtz is a unique talent and the kind who can deliver big trophies if you have him playing his way.

Liverpool simply must do all they can to fix things.