Robertson Defends Wirtz After Carragher Calls for Liverpool Dropping

Andy Robertson backed Florian Wirtz to succeed at Liverpool, arguing teammates failed to finish the chances the German created last season.

Andy Robertson has publicly supported Liverpool teammate Florian Wirtz after pundit Jamie Carragher suggested the German should be left out of the starting lineup following Sunday's 1-0 victory against Bournemouth. Carragher, speaking on Sky, said Wirtz has not earned a regular place in the side.

Wirtz, a £100m signing, managed seven goals across 49 games in his first season at Anfield and has recorded a single assist through six appearances this term. The 23-year-old arrived after a prolific spell with a double-winning Bayer Leverkusen team.

Appearing on the Stick to Football podcast, Robertson accepted that the playmaker still has something to show in the Premier League but pointed to poor finishing from those around him. He described Wirtz as a "really special footballer" and noted that chances the German created went unconverted.

Robertson cited Mohamed Salah's lowest goal return, a quieter scoring season from Cody Gakpo, and long injury absences for Alexander Isak, while acknowledging Hugo Ekitike performed well. He added that Wirtz could realistically have finished with more than the 10 assists he registered in all competitions and said the player has the mentality to succeed.

One example of the problem came in the 2-1 loss at Chelsea, where Wirtz set up Salah with a clever flick only for the shot to miss the target.