Florian Wirtz has made it clear that the Liverpool squad remains fully behind head coach Arne Slot, despite the team’s struggles this season and growing fan dissatisfaction with the Dutch manager. Liverpool have endured a difficult campaign, losing 15 games across all competitions, sitting 21 points behind Premier League leaders Arsenal, and suffering a 4-0 defeat to Manchester City in the FA Cup on Saturday. The loss was particularly painful, as captain Virgil van Dijk admitted the team had appeared to lose their fighting spirit.
Despite these challenges, Wirtz believes the players still have faith in Slot. He highlighted the manager’s success in winning the Premier League last season and his ability to guide the team through key matches this year. “Yes, of course we are believing in the manager,” said the £100m signing. “The team should believe in the manager because they won the league last season. We had a lot of good games this season and we wanted it to be better. We still have things to play for and everything I can see is we believe in the manager and try to get our best on the pitch tomorrow.”
Wirtz also disagreed with Van Dijk’s assessment of the game against Manchester City, insisting that the team did not give up. “I didn’t know about this that he said this but I think I would not agree directly because we still tried to create chances to turn the game around. Of course, when the game gets longer and in the 80th minute or something and you are 3-0 back, it is mentally also difficult to go and go and go. We just try to give our best in the game, when it was 3-0 or 4-0 we had still a few chances.”
For Wirtz, the upcoming Champions League quarter-final against Paris Saint-Germain represents a significant milestone. It will be his first appearance in the competition, a dream he has had since joining the club. “Of course these kind of games you want to play as a player and I dreamt of when I came to the club. So I try everything to do a good game tomorrow and next week at Anfield.”
Key Points from Wirtz’s Comments
- Wirtz reaffirms the team’s belief in Arne Slot despite recent difficulties.
- He disagrees with Van Dijk’s claim that the team gave up during the FA Cup match.
- Wirtz sees the Champions League quarter-final as a major personal achievement.
- He emphasizes the importance of continuing to fight and perform well, even in tough situations.
