(Video) Florian Wirtz responds to German critics with pointed celebration after stunning free kick | OneFootball

Florian Wirtz showed with one piece of magic on Sunday night why Liverpool were to make him their first-ever £100m signing.

The ex-Bayer Leverkusen star was a marquee addition to Arne Slot’s squad when he came to Merseyside in June, although there’s already been some debate among pundits as to whether or not he’ll be a success at Anfield.

The 22-year-old was the subject of a scathing article from German publication Bild after his country’s shock 2-0 defeat to Slovakia last week, being derided as ‘faltering’ and ‘almost invisible’, so he’d have felt that he had a point to prove in his next match…and prove it he did!

Wirtz scores sensational free kick in cathartic Germany win

Needing a win over Northern Ireland to kickstart their World Cup qualifying campaign, Julian Nagelsmann’s side held a narrow 2-1 lead with just under 20 minutes remaining when they won a free kick 25 yards from goal.

Up stepped Wirtz to guide the ball over the defensive wall and into the visitors’ net beyond the despairing dive of Bailey Peacock-Farrell, putting the seal on a cathartic 3-1 victory.

As he turned to celebrate, the Liverpool playmaker put his finger to his ear in what appeared to be a pointed gesture towards those in his homeland who were castigating him after the loss in Bratislava three days previously.

(Photo by Stuart Franklin/Getty Images)

The perfect response from Wirtz to his critics

Although some of the recent criticism of Wirtz has been way over the top, he’ll no doubt have been delighted to produce a moment of such magic at a crucial juncture for his national team, who were in danger of taking just one point from a possible six to begin their World Cup qualifying campaign.

Aside from his show-stopping free kick, the 22-year-old made some important contributions throughout Germany’s win in Cologne. As per Sofascore, he completed 33 of his 38 passes (87% success) and two dribbles, won seven duels and executed three key passes.

He’ll now have almost a full week to prepare for Liverpool’s visit to Burnley next Sunday, which begins a hectic sequence of seven matches in 21 days as the Reds’ season shifts up a few gears.

After seeing Dominik Szoboszlai net a stunning free kick in the win over Arsenal last weekend, on Sunday night it was Wirtz’s turn to grab the headlines with a majestic set piece. In both cases, it came at the perfect time for their respective teams.

Hopefully we’ll see a few more moments like that from our number 7 as the campaign progresses!

You can view Wirtz’s free kick and celebration below, taken from Viaplay’s match coverage and shared via @LFCFC748304 on X: