Huth Warns of Wirtz's Struggles at Liverpool
Robert Huth does not see a happy ending coming for Florian Wirtz at Liverpool. In fact, the former Premier League defender fears the club could already be weighing up an exit by Christmas.
"I really find it hard to see how this can still turn around," Huth said on All Out Football's podcast In The Mixer, speaking about Wirtz’s situation at Anfield. When a man with 322 Premier League appearances and a title medal with Leicester City in 2016 talks about England’s top flight, people tend to listen.
Huth questions Wirtz’s physical edge
Huth stressed he recognises Wirtz’s talent. The 23-year-old is "obviously a good player", he admitted. But the German sees a fundamental problem.
"He has real problems with his physicality," said the 42-year-old, who won 19 caps for Germany and featured at the 2006 World Cup on home soil. For Huth, that weakness could prove decisive in a league that relentlessly tests bodies and minds.
Liverpool invested heavily to bring Wirtz across the Channel. In 2025, they paid a base fee of 125 million euros to Bayer Leverkusen, a statement signing meant to light up Anfield for years. The first season did not live up to that billing. There were flashes, yes, but nowhere near the consistent brilliance that fee demands.
Now, under new coach Andoni Iraola, the club hopes year two will be different. This is supposed to be the season of the definitive breakthrough, the moment the price tag starts to make sense.
Wirtz hits back: “I’ve developed in almost every area”
Wirtz himself rejects the idea that he cannot cope with the Premier League’s demands. Speaking recently to RTL and Sky, he pushed back at Huth’s assessment and similar criticism.
"I would say that I have developed in almost every area. Definitely when it comes to my physical level," Wirtz said. He painted a picture of a daily grind at Liverpool that has forced him to raise his game.
"Even in training, I have to push myself almost to my limits every day, simply because there are players here who are also fully committed in training every day and have that kind of quality. You also have to be at a good level yourself," the Germany international explained.
From Wirtz’s perspective, the adaptation is underway. The work is being done. The body, he insists, is catching up with the league.
“An expensive problem” – and a Christmas deadline?
Huth remains unconvinced. His scepticism hardened after Liverpool’s opening Premier League game of the season, a 2-2 draw away at Newcastle United.
"His body language is also a bit poor," Huth said of Wirtz’s display in that match. For the former centre-back, the issues go beyond duels and sprints; he sees a player not yet projecting the authority expected of a 125-million-euro signing.
Huth does not believe a quick turnaround is on the horizon. In his view, the clock is already ticking loudly over Wirtz’s Anfield future.
"By Christmas they will probably look to move him on if he does not improve, because he has become an expensive problem for Liverpool," he warned.
The verdict is harsh. The stakes are clear. Between now and the festive period, Wirtz must prove he belongs at the heart of Iraola’s Liverpool – or risk seeing one of Europe’s most talked-about transfers turn into one of its most brutal reality checks.
