Dean Saunders has urged Andoni Iraola to move Florian Wirtz to the wing and add a defensive midfielder, arguing the playmaker is a liability out of possession in his current central role.
The former Liverpool striker compared Wirtz’s situation to Philippe Coutinho under Brendan Rodgers. “He was an absolute genius, but sometimes struggled a bit out of possession,” Saunders told the Echo. “I think it’s time to try him out wide, exactly how Brendan Rodgers did with Philippe and allow him to just create chances and not worry about defending too much.”
Saunders believes Liverpool need a dedicated No.6 in the mould of Rodri, Patrick Vieira or N’Golo Kanté to shield the defence. “Their midfield is a little unbalanced with Wirtz in it, and it will catch up to them eventually,” he said, noting that while Liverpool have conceded few goals so far, the current setup lacks equilibrium.
Wirtz started all five of Iraola’s opening Premier League matches but drew criticism for his display in the 1-0 win at Bournemouth before the international break.
Sources
Written by PremClub News with the help of AI, using only facts from the reports listed on this page. How we rate stories · Editorial policy