Overview

• Wirtz joined Liverpool from Bayer Leverkusen in the summer for a fee reported at about £116 million.
• He is yet to register a goal or assist in nine Premier League and Champions League appearances as Liverpool head into the break on a three-game league losing run.
• Jamie Carragher labelled him "the obvious problem" after the Galatasaray defeat, while Bayern figure Karl-Heinz Rummenigge suggested he would have fared better in Munich.
• DFB leaders Andreas Rettig and Rudi Völler urged patience, and coach Julian Nagelsmann described Wirtz as Germany’s most important attacking player with key teammates injured.
• Wirtz has stated he prefers a central No.10 role, and analysts such as Keith Wyness point to tactical fit and Premier League pace as factors, with qualifiers against Luxembourg and Northern Ireland seen as a chance to rebuild confidence.