Germany manager Julian Nagelsmann has defended midfielder Florian Wirtz’s slow start to life with Liverpool, arguing he just needs to “get used” to the Premier League.
Wirtz, 22, is yet to register a goal or assist in England’s top flight since his £116m move from Bayer Leverkusen in June.
However, Nagelsmann believes this is because the midfielder is adjusting to life in a different league.
“Even though he hasn’t scored any goals, he is still the player who creates the most chances in the Premier League,” he told Sport 1 after Germany’s 4-0 home win over Luxembourg on Friday.
“It’s not his fault if his teammates don’t convert them, and the statistics don’t even tell the whole story.
“Wirtz needs to get used to the league. I saw him playing with total freedom. He knows what he’s capable of and how things work.
“He hasn’t always had it easy – he’ll have to work hard now too.”
According to Opta, no player has created more chances than Wirtz (21) in the Premier League so far this season.
And former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp also believes the negativity surrounding the 22-year-old has been overblown.
“His quality is so outstanding,” Klopp told German outlet n-tv.
“The discussions are a bit exaggerated.
“Liverpool just lost three games in a row, which is unusual. But that’s also normal in life. And that’s why such things are discussed there.
“[Wirtz is] a once-in-a-century talent, and at some point he’ll show that in every game again, just as he did at Leverkusen.”
Wirtz will next be in action when Germany play Northern Ireland in a World Cup qualifier on Monday (19:45 BST).
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