Florian Wirtz's Liverpool Struggles: Robert Huth's Concerns

Robert Huth does not see a happy ending coming for Florian Wirtz at Liverpool. In fact, the former Premier League defender is already talking about an exit.

"I really find it hard to see how this can still turn around," Huth said on All Out Football's podcast In The Mixer, assessing the 23-year-old’s situation at Anfield with the bluntness of a man who has lived this league for years. With 322 Premier League appearances and a title with Leicester City in 2016 behind him, Huth’s words carry weight.

Liverpool pushed hard and paid heavily to get Wirtz. In 2025 they sent a base fee of 125 million euros to Bayer Leverkusen to bring the playmaker to England, banking on his creativity to light up Anfield for the long term. His debut season, though, never quite caught fire. There were flashes, moments where his touch and vision hinted at the player who dazzled in the Bundesliga, but the overall package fell short of the towering expectations that come with that price tag.

Now, under new head coach Andoni Iraola, Liverpool are banking on year two being different. The idea is simple: a fresh tactical approach, a full adaptation period behind him, and Wirtz finally imposing himself on the Premier League.

Huth is not convinced.

Although he called Wirtz "obviously a good player," the 42-year-old questioned whether the midfielder can cope with the league’s physical demands. "He has real problems with his physicality," said Huth, who won 19 caps for Germany and played at the 2006 World Cup on home soil. For him, the issue is not talent. It is whether Wirtz’s body and intensity can withstand the relentless pace and contact of English football.

The opening day at Newcastle did nothing to change his mind. Liverpool drew 2-2 at St James’ Park, but Huth zoomed in on Wirtz’s demeanour. "His body language is also a bit poor," he said, unimpressed by the German’s impact and presence in such a high-tempo fixture. To Huth, Wirtz did not look like a player ready to grab the game – or his Liverpool career – by the scruff of the neck.

Wirtz sees a very different picture.

Speaking recently to RTL and Sky, the Germany international pushed back against the criticism and painted a story of growth rather than stagnation. "I would say that I have developed in almost every area. Definitely when it comes to my physical level," he said, underlining the work he has put in behind the scenes.

He described a training ground where standards leave no room for comfort. "Even in training, I have to push myself almost to my limits every day, simply because there are players here who are also fully committed in training every day and have that kind of quality. You also have to be at a good level yourself," he explained. In his eyes, Liverpool’s environment is forcing him upwards, not exposing his weaknesses.

Huth remains unmoved. He looks at the numbers, the fee, the performances, and draws a brutal conclusion. "By Christmas they will probably look to move him on if he does not improve, because he has become an expensive problem for Liverpool," the former centre-back warned.

That is the fault line now running through Wirtz’s Liverpool story: a club that paid elite money, a coach trying to unlock him, a player convinced he is evolving, and a seasoned Premier League voice predicting the plug could be pulled before the season even reaches its halfway point.