Liverpool: Keane compares Wirtz to Real Madrid legend he ‘could not see being a top player’ | OneFootball

Roy Keane has made a prediction on what we can expect from Florin Wirtz at Liverpool after comparing him to a Real Madrid legend he had doubts over during their time in the Premier League.

Wirtz got off to sticky start at Anfield following his £100m move from Bayer Leverkusen in the summer, but has shown some real quality in recent weeks to suggest he’s about to really catch fire for the Reds.

Assessing Wirtz as the panel discussed which of the attacking summer signings in the Premier League have been hits or misses, Neville asked: “Florian Wirtz – four Premier League goals, two assists in 24 games. Has he been a hit so far, a miss, or a maybe?”

Jamie Carragher responded: “I think he’s in the middle. He’s a maybe. He’s definitely improved.”

Ian Wright added: “He done some good stuff, you can see he’s coming on.”

Jill Scott said: “He just needs a bit of time.”

And then Keane drew a comparison with former Tottenham midfielder Luka Modric, who took some time to get up to speed in the English top flight before earning a move to Real Madrid and becoming arguably the greatest midfielder of his generation.

“I still think it’ll take him a full season to get up to speed,” Keane said. “I think next year… remember when [Luka] Modric and all these boys took their time at Spurs to get used to the physicality, and he ended up playing in a two. I could not see how he (Modric) was going to become a top player.”

Wirtz impressed in Liverpool’s 1-0 win over Sunderland on Wednesday and manager Arne Slot believes his performance deserved a goal.

“Not for the first time he was really good,” Slot said. But recently when he was really good he was also involved in goals and assists.

“I think today he was very close and maybe should have been on the scoreboard with the amount of quality he has.

“But it’s good to see, not only him but also other players developing so well and playing another good game of football.”

After doubting in October if Wirtz would ever be a “great” Liverpool player after his slow start to life at Anfield, Carragher changed his tune dramatically earlier this month, suggesting he’s actually a mix of Premier League legends Kevin De Bruyne and David Silva.

“Wirtz is getting better all the time,” Carragher said on Sky Sports’ Monday Night Football. “Eventually, the mantle has to be passed on, and there is no doubt the lad has real quality.

“The Premier League has lost Kevin De Bruyne, (but) we have gained Wirtz. We are talking about special players coming into our league. I have watched him a lot and thought about whether he can get to De Bruyne’s level. When I watch Wirtz, I think he could be lovely on the eye like David Silva, but he has almost a bit of both.”