Arne Slot challenged Florian Wirtz to meet the high standards set by Mohamed Salah to live up to Liverpool’s expectations
LIVERPOOL — Arne Slot has challenged Florian Wirtz to meet the high standards set by Mohamed Salah if he is to live up to Liverpool’s expectations as their new record signing.
Wirtz is set to make his Premier League debut when the reigning champions kick off their campaign at home against Bournemouth on Friday. While Slot praised the German international’s smooth adaptation - saying it “went better than expected, and we already expected a lot” - he acknowledged that a true measure of his impact will take time.
Liverpool view the 22-year-old as a game-changing addition, much like Virgil van Dijk and Alisson were in their early days at the club. Slot believes Wirtz can reach a similar level of influence by following in the footsteps of Salah, who remains the benchmark at Anfield and holds the Premier League record with nine goals in seven opening-day appearances.
Slot was asked whether Wirtz was a signing to take Liverpool to the next level. “That is something I can only answer in the upcoming years. Everything we expect is very positive, but between expecting and realising something is different,” he said.
“Why are Messi and Ronaldo and Mo so highly regarded? Because they are always fit. Every single game they are fit and that is something that Florian first has to show in a league like ours. If he is able to stay fit then our fans will see great moments.”
Liverpool shelled out a club-record 100 million pounds to secure attacking midfielder Wirtz from Bayer Leverkusen, a fee that could rise to a British record 116 million pounds with add-ons. Despite the hefty price tag and strong interest from Bayern Munich and Manchester City, Slot insists Wirtz’s arrival isn’t intended as a statement signing by the club.
“Liverpool have done this before. With Alisson Becker we spent so much money, with Virgil we spent so much money, and with inflation I think it is the (level of) Liverpool signing. We mainly make these signings. But we also sell players. If we make these signings, we also have to sell players," he said.
“He is a different profile to what we have. That is what we wanted – to bring a different profile in rather than adding something that we already had. It is very positive that we could bring in such a highly regarded player, but Liverpool has always been able to bring in these kinds of players.”