Iraola defends £116m Wirtz after slow Liverpool start: 'I rate him very highly'

Andoni Iraola has defended Florian Wirtz against growing scrutiny over his form at Liverpool, insisting the £116m signing should be judged by the same standards as every other player at the club.

Wirtz, who joined from Bayer Leverkusen in a deal worth up to £116m, has yet to score this season and has managed only one assist. The slow start has drawn comment from his former manager Jurgen Klopp, who called Wirtz into the Germany squad but cautioned that people should stop expecting “special moments” from the 22-year-old.

Iraola was direct in his response. “He should be judged like everybody else, whether he plays well or doesn’t play well,” the Liverpool head coach said. “Mostly I always say how does the team play when you are on the pitch. I am very happy with Florian, I rate him very highly, he understands what we need from him. He is trying to help in every aspect of the game.”

The Spaniard acknowledged that goals and assists remain an expectation but argued Wirtz’s contribution extends beyond the statistics. “Obviously we want him to have assists and goals also, but he is helping us in a lot of different areas. We could give him some rest the other day that I think he needed.”

Iraola also spoke warmly about Ronald Araujo, who has settled into Liverpool’s starting line-up at right-back despite being a central defender by trade. The Uruguay international joined from Barcelona, where he had lost his place in the side last season, and has played more minutes than Iraola initially anticipated.

“The first time I talked to him, sometimes you talk to a player and can feel straight away, everything was positive and I think he needed this kind of change,” Iraola said. “He has come with humility, he came from a big club. Physically also he has played probably more minutes than we expected. He is finishing the games in a good place physically, he is not cramping.”

Iraola added that he is now encouraging Araujo to learn English so the former Barcelona captain can communicate more effectively with his teammates. “When you are a centre-back and you have to play right-back the demands are different. I like his spirit and now I am pushing him to learn a bit the language, so he can communicate better with the teammates.”