It is fair to say that Liverpool would have expected more from their big-money signings than what they have seen so far on the pitch across all competitions.
Alexander Isak was brought in for a £125m British record transfer from Newcastle United to bolster their attack, but his only goal so far came against Championship side Southampton in the League Cup.
The Sweden international did ‘assist’ Cody Gakpo’s goal in the 2-1 defeat to Chelsea on Saturday, although some may argue that it was a miscontrol rather than a deliberate touch for the Dutchman.
Jeremie Frimpong, signed from Bayer Leverkusen, has started one Premier League match this season and was an unused substitute against the Blues at Stamford Bridge.
Milos Kerkez has not hit the ground running at Anfield, since his move from Bournemouth, but he has, at least, started all seven of the club’s league matches under Arne Slot.
One player who does need to step up with more moments of quality at the top end of the pitch is £115m signing Florian Wirtz in the attacking midfield position.
Why Liverpool need more from Florian Wirtz
The Germany international was a bona fide superstar for Leverkusen in the 2023/24 and 2024/25 campaigns, delivering 34 goals and 33 assists in the two seasons combined, per Sofascore.
Wirtz produced consistent quality in the final third as both a scorer and a creator of goals for Leverkusen, as shown in the incredible clips in the footage above.
Unfortunately, though, Liverpool are yet to see the best of the 22-year-old attacking midfielder since his big-money move to Anfield, which was a club-record signing before the Isak deal went through later in the window.
Wirtz has yet to deliver a goal or an assist for the Reds since he set up Hugo Ekitike for his goal in the Community Shield loss to Crystal Palace at the start of the season.
The German playmaker has, though, been unfortunate not to register an assist or two in the Premier League and the Champions League this term with the chances that he has created for the team.
Appearances
2
7
Starts
2
5
xG
0.37
1.03
Goals
0
0
Key passes
7
11
Big chances created
2
1
Assists
0
0
As you can see in the table above, Wirtz has created three ‘big chances’ and 18 chances in total in nine appearances in those two competitions, which is an impressive return.
However, his teammates have been too wasteful with the chances that he has created, such as when his impressive flick fell Mo Salah’s way against Chelsea, just for the winger to blaze the ball over the bar.
Wirtz does need to improve when it comes to carrying a threat as a goalscorer, though, as his record for Leverkusen suggests that he is much better than he has shown in English football to date.
With the struggles that Liverpool have had at the top end of the pitch this season, with their new signings and the players they already had, it must be frustrating to see one of their former attackers shining.
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The Reds sold Xherdan Shaqiri to Lyon in the summer of 2021 for a fee of around £9.5m, after he had been a solid rotation player for the club for several years.
Since leaving Anfield, the Switzerland international has played for Lyon, Chicago Fire, and Basel. He is currently on fire in his home country, playing like Salah and outperforming Wirtz.
Why Liverpool may rue selling Xherdan Shaqiri
The left-footed star produced eight goals and nine assists in 63 matches for Liverpool, per Transfermarkt, whilst typically playing as a substitute because of Salah’s form in his position.
Shaqiri returned to Basel, the club he started his career with, in the summer of 2024 and is now playing like he is the Egypt international with his terrific output in the final third over the past 18 months or so.
Salah ended the 2024/25 campaign with a haul of 34 goals and 23 assists in 52 appearances in all competitions, and has started this season with three goals and three assists in ten appearances, per Transfermarkt.
Shaqiri, who was described as a “powerful” player by writer and analyst Kai Watson, did his best impression of the Liverpool number 11 in his first season back at Basel last season.
The experienced forward ended the campaign with an eye-catching return of 21 goals and 22 assists in 39 appearances in all competitions for the Swiss side, which shows that he was almost as influential as Salah as both a scorer and a creator of goals.
Not only is the left-footed star playing like Salah, the former Liverpool star is also outperforming Wirtz in the current campaign with his output at league level for Basel, albeit in a different division to the Premier League.
Appearances
7
7
Goals
0
4
Big chances missed
1
1
Key passes per game
1.6
4.6
Big chances created
1
4
Assists
0
3
As you can see in the table above, Shaqiri has provided seven goals and assists in seven Super League matches for his club, whilst the German attacking midfielder is still looking for his first goal contribution in the Premier League for Liverpool.
Whilst the Switzerland international’s form for Basel does not mean that he would be the answer to the club’s current issues at the top end of the pitch, as he is playing outside of the top five leagues in Europe, it does suggest that he still has something to offer.
Shaqiri was a useful player, as shown by his aforementioned output in limited minutes, for the Reds and could have still been a solid option as a back-up to Salah, which would have been helpful with how Wirtz and Isak have started their Anfield careers.
Therefore, Liverpool may rue that they only sold him for £5m when they look at what he is currently achieving in comparison to the players they spent a combined £240m on in Wirtz and Isak.