Florian Wirtz blanks again but Liverpool man exudes promise in Germany World Cup qualifying win

Liverpool playmaker Florian Wirtz once again failed to score or assist as Germany ran out 4-0 winners over Luxembourg in Friday's World Cup 2026 qualifier, but the 22-year-old could count himself unlucky.

Since setting up Hugo Ekitike in the Reds' Community Shield loss to Crystal Palace, the £116m man has failed to directly contribute to a goal in any of his last nine appearances for the reigning Premier League champions.

Wirtz already finds himself second from bottom in the power rankings of Liverpool's summer signings, although the 22-year-old has nevertheless shown flashes of what he is capable of.

Indeed, only six players in the Premier League have averaged more shot-creating actions per 90 minutes than the Bayer Leverkusen Invincible, who has registered 4.48 in the early stages of the current season.

That number is yet to lead to a direct contribution in the English top flight, though, and Wirtz also could not claim a direct involvement in his nation's 4-0 thumping of Luxembourg on Friday, although he was unfortunate in two key moments.

Florian Wirtz's Germany performance analysed amid Liverpool struggles

In the 32nd minute of the contest, Wirtz drove infield from the left and played a cute pass through several bodies to Newcastle United's Nick Woltemade, who was presented with a glorious chance inside the box.

However, the Magpies marksman got his second touch all wrong and the chance went begging, as Wirtz was denied a potential assist for Die Mannschaft.

The Liverpool man then stood over a 20-yard free kick in the second half, and his strike cleared the wall but clipped the outside of the post with Luxembourg goalkeeper Anthony Moris flat-footed.

Nevertheless, Wirtz was still awarded a stellar 8.7 rating by Sofascore - the second highest of any player on the pitch - having created four chances and fired five shots, three of which were blocked.

Germany comfortably prevailed on Friday thanks to two goals from Joshua Kimmich and one each from David Raum and Serge Gnabry, as they moved on to six points from their first three games in Group A.

Julian Nagelsmann's men are above Northern Ireland and Slovakia on goal difference, and they face the former in their fourth preliminary game in Belfast on Monday.

How did Liverpool's other players perform on international duty?

Wirtz's Germany will come up against Conor Bradley's Northern Ireland next up, and the right-back completed 89 minutes of his country's 2-0 victory at home to Slovakia on Friday.

Bradley drew four fouls, fired two shots and made three interceptions at Windsor Park, but he also lost possession 31 times and was booked on the night.

Elsewhere, Alexander Isak played the full 90 and hit the woodwork as Sweden lost 2-0 at home to Switzerland, but striker rival Ekitike enjoyed a finer evening for France.

The former Eintracht Frankfurt attacker provided an assist for Kylian Mbappe in a 3-0 victory over Azerbaijan but also failed to score with eight shots, hitting the frame of the goal once and seeing four attempts blocked.