For me, Wirtz’s comments about movement around him offer Liverpool a clue about how to finally unlock the footballer we know is still there.

Craig is still away enjoying his well-earned holiday, so you’ve got me again today. And while Manchester City continue doing their best to ensure nobody talks about anything else in football, I actually want to start with Liverpool.

More specifically, Florian Wirtz.

I’ve seen the latest reports suggesting Liverpool could consider selling him in the summer of 2027 if things don’t improve. Manchester City, Arsenal, and Chelsea have even been mentioned as possible destinations.

I think it’s absolute bollocks.

Could Liverpool eventually reach a point where they have a decision to make? Of course. If we get to the end of a second season and Wirtz still hasn’t found anything approaching his best level, then you have a conversation.

We are nowhere near that point yet.

In fact, watching him for Germany against Serbia was a reminder of exactly why Liverpool spent so much money on him in the first place.

I Saw The Wirtz Liverpool Bought

Wirtz was excellent against Serbia.

He scored, was involved in the opening goal and, more importantly for me, looked like he was enjoying football again. There was freedom to his game. He wanted the ball, players were moving around him and suddenly we saw those little touches and combinations that made him one of Europe’s most exciting players.

His comments afterwards interested me even more.

“The players around me made it easy for me. We had a lot of movement. That’s when you can shine.”

I don’t think that was Wirtz having a dig at Liverpool or Iraola. I wouldn’t twist his words into something they weren’t.

But there is something Liverpool can learn from them.

When Wirtz has options around him, when players are moving and when the football becomes instinctive, he looks a completely different player. We saw it repeatedly at Leverkusen and we’ve now seen another glimpse of it with Germany.

Jurgen Klopp clearly understands that.

Klopp also rejected the idea that Liverpool somehow play the wrong way for Wirtz. He spoke about how hard Florian worked against Serbia and how much Liverpool supporters would have enjoyed seeing him play with that freedom again.

I certainly did.

Germany won 2-0, Wirtz scored the second and he even wore the captain’s armband during the second half. It looked like a footballer rediscovering himself.

Now Liverpool need to carry that confidence back to Anfield.

Confidence Looks Like A Huge Part Of This

There have been moments watching Wirtz at Liverpool when I’ve wondered what has happened to him.

Not because I suddenly think he’s a bad footballer.

We’ve seen simple passes go astray. We’ve seen poor first touches. We’ve seen little mistakes that simply aren’t characteristic of the player we watched before he arrived.

That screams confidence to me.

Obviously there are tactical issues as well. Liverpool are still adapting to Iraola and trying to find the right balance in midfield. We’ve spent weeks discussing whether Wirtz should play at number 10, whether Szoboszlai should be there, what Mac Allister’s best partner looks like and how Trey Nyoni fits into everything.

Wirtz has become caught in the middle of all of that.

But I still believe the player is there.

Get him feeling invincible again. Get players moving around him. Give him passing options and let him play without feeling like every touch is being analysed because of the price Liverpool paid for him.

Then judge him.

That’s why I find the transfer discussion so premature.

If we reach summer 2027 and nothing has changed, fine. Football is ruthless and Liverpool would have to consider their options.

But Manchester City? Arsenal? Chelsea?

I don’t see it.

And I certainly don’t see Liverpool sitting here now planning for his departure.

I’m still backing Florian Wirtz to make all of this conversation look ridiculous eventually.

I Love What Leoni Is Doing At Liverpool

Another story I really liked this week concerned Giovanni Leoni.

The lad has had an incredibly difficult start to life at Liverpool. He arrived young, suffered a serious injury almost immediately and has spent around a year on the sidelines.

What impressed me was hearing that Leoni chose to complete his rehabilitation at the AXA Training Centre rather than heading somewhere more comfortable while he recovered.

That matters.

He has spent that time getting to know the coaches, medical staff and his teammates. He’s becoming part of Liverpool even while he cannot contribute on the pitch.

For a young player arriving from another country, those relationships are hugely important.

When Leoni eventually returns, he isn’t walking into the building as the new lad anymore. He knows everybody. He understands the environment and, hopefully, he feels completely at home.

We already know how exciting his potential is.

Jeremy Jacquet has shown exactly how quickly a young centre-back can establish himself at Liverpool. If Leoni can come back healthy and begin fulfilling his own potential, suddenly the future of that defence looks incredibly exciting.

There will be patience required after such a long absence, but I’m really looking forward to seeing him.

I’m Exhausted By Manchester City

I tried to talk about Liverpool first.

Now we have to go back there.

Manchester City have officially appealed the independent commission’s decision, continuing to describe its findings as an “opinion” while maintaining their innocence and arguing that there are material errors of law, principle and fact.

I find the language extraordinary.

This wasn’t somebody sitting in a pub offering their opinion on whether City had done anything wrong. An independent commission spent years examining the evidence before reaching its findings.

City are perfectly entitled to appeal. That is part of the process, and the Premier League has confirmed an independent three-member Appeal Board will now consider that challenge.

But I’m exhausted by everything surrounding this case.

We’re talking about governments. We’re talking about international investment. We’re talking about meetings in Downing Street. We’re talking about the wider relationship between the United Kingdom and the UAE.

I run a Liverpool channel. I shouldn’t need a degree in international relations to discuss the biggest story in English football.

And that is before you get into all the other possible consequences.

What happens if Everton argue City’s actions cost them European revenue which could have affected their own financial position? What about clubs that missed Champions League qualification? What about teams that lost cup finals or finished in different league positions?

I don’t know where all of that ends.

That’s why, strangely enough, I’m almost as fascinated by this as I am angry.

The commission found City guilty of serious financial breaches across nine seasons, including the use of sham commercial arrangements to inflate revenues and reduce costs. City were also found guilty on three of four charges concerning failures to cooperate with the investigation.

Now they’ve appealed.

This story is going nowhere.

Thankfully, neither is Florian Wirtz as far as I’m concerned.

He’ll come back from Germany with a goal, an excellent performance and hopefully a bit of that swagger we’ve been waiting to see regularly at Liverpool.

Manchester City are coming to Anfield next.

What better time would there be for Wirtz to remind everybody exactly how good he can be?