Liverpool: Florian Wirtz's 47% goal-involvement drop after £116m move

Florian Wirtz arrived at Liverpool after averaging 0.62 goal involvements per appearance for Bayer Leverkusen, but the £116m signing's rate has fallen by almost half during his first 55 games at Anfield.

Liverpool knew they were paying for proven production as well as potential when they agreed a deal worth up to £116m for Wirtz in the summer of 2025.

The Germany international had registered 57 goals and 65 assists across 197 appearances for Leverkusen, giving him 122 direct goal involvements before his 23rd birthday.

More than a year into his Liverpool career, however, those numbers look very different. Wirtz has seven goals and 11 assists from 55 appearances for the Reds - a total of 18 goal involvements and an average of 0.33 per game.

That represents a drop of approximately 47% from the 0.62 goal involvements per appearance he averaged during his Leverkusen career.

Wirtz's attacking output has almost halved at Liverpool

The comparison helps explain why the debate around Wirtz has continued despite Liverpool undergoing considerable change around him.

He did not arrive from Germany as a raw prospect. Wirtz had already spent five seasons in Leverkusen's senior side, starred in their unbeaten Bundesliga-winning 2023-24 campaign and produced 16 goals and 15 assists in 45 appearances during his final season at the BayArena.

His record there worked out at roughly one goal involvement every 1.6 appearances. At Liverpool, that figure has moved closer to one every three matches.

The context has not always helped. Liverpool endured a difficult 2025-26 campaign after winning the Premier League the previous season, eventually finishing fifth, while Wirtz was asked to operate in different attacking roles under Arne Slot.

Slot subsequently left and Andoni Iraola arrived from Bournemouth, giving the German another tactical system to learn at the beginning of his second campaign.

There have been promising spells, including appearances away from a conventional central number 10 role, but the start of 2026-27 has brought renewed scrutiny. Wirtz has registered only one assist in his first six appearances of the campaign and struggled to impose himself during Liverpool's recent 1-0 victory over Bournemouth.

That performance prompted Jamie Carragher to question whether the issue can still be described simply as poor form.

The former Liverpool defender argued on Sky Sports that what supporters are seeing may instead be representative of Wirtz's current level, and suggested that he should not start the next Premier League match against Manchester City.

Iraola sees more than Wirtz's goals and assists

Iraola's assessment has been notably more positive.

Speaking before the Bournemouth game, the Liverpool boss insisted that he was "very happy" with Wirtz and stressed that the attacking midfielder was contributing in areas not necessarily reflected by conventional goals-and-assists numbers.

"He understands what we need from him," Iraola said. "Obviously he will want to add assists or goals but he is helping us in a lot of different areas."

That distinction is important when assessing a creative midfielder, but Wirtz's previous output also makes those numbers difficult to ignore.

Liverpool did not spend up to £116m on a player whose value at Leverkusen depended solely on subtle contributions between the lines. His ability to create and finish attacks was a significant part of what made him one of Europe's most valuable young players.

At Leverkusen, Wirtz combined those qualities with an end product of 122 goal involvements in 197 matches. At Liverpool, the equivalent rate would have produced around 34 across his first 55 appearances rather than 18.

That does not mean the German must reproduce Bundesliga numbers exactly in the Premier League, nor does it settle the wider debate over his performances.

It does, however, illustrate the size of the gap Liverpool and Iraola are trying to close: Wirtz has not merely experienced a small statistical dip since moving to England - his rate of directly contributing to goals has fallen by almost half.

That drop has also begun to feed speculation over whether Liverpool could eventually reconsider his long-term future, even if there is no suggestion at present that the club are actively looking to sell him.