Man City Vs Liverpool, English Premier League: 'Wirtz Is A Problem', Says Neville

Gary Neville believes Florian Wirtz is becoming a problem for Liverpool after describing him as a "little boy" during the Premier League champions' defeat to Manchester City. 

Wirtz was one of several marquee signings for Arne Slot's team over the summer, arriving from Bayer Leverkusen for a huge fee.

The Germany international has struggled to adapt to life in the Premier League, failing to register a goal or an assist in 11 appearances, but he has shown glimpses of quality.

His 28 shot involvements are the most in the Premier League without scoring or assisting a goal, with Newcastle United's Anthony Gordon the next-highest on 21. 

And Wirtz's struggles were again on show at Etihad Stadium on Sunday, with only Hugo Ekitike (11) having fewer touches than the midfielder's 39 among Liverpool's starting outfield players. 

"Wirtz is a problem," the Sky Sports pundit said on the Gary Neville Podcast. "Let's just call it as it is. It's an issue.

"He's £100m-plus, and to be fair, I said a few weeks ago, [Milos] Kerkez looked like a little boy out there. I thought Wirtz looked like a little boy. That can't be the case.

"We've been tiptoeing around him for a few months, around the fact that he's young, he's coming to a new country, but he's £100m-plus, you're going to have to stand up soon.

"He's obviously got something, he's a really good player, he's technically fantastic, but he's been mauled out there today by Matheus Nunes and by others.

"He's been chucked around the pitch, and he didn't deliver on the quality side of things as well, so his performance was a real worry."

Neville added that Liverpool must find a way to bring out the best in Wirtz, who has looked more at home during his time at Anfield when playing in the Champions League. 

The 22-year-old has created the joint-most chances in UEFA's flagship club competition (16, level with Kylian Mbappe), and also registered two assists in a 5-1 win over Eintracht Frankfurt last month, his first goal involvements since the Community Shield in August.

Wirtz delivered arguably his best performance for the Reds during their 1-0 win over Real Madrid last week, playing out on the left wing, though most of his minutes have come in a central role.

He created five chances from open play for the second time in a Liverpool shirt against Madrid, becoming the only Premier League player to do so in more than one game across all competitions this season.

"He's a Germany international of great standing, and he looks well short in respect of what you'd expect in a top, physical Premier League match," added Neville.

"They've got to get him up to speed, they've got to get that little bit of tenacity into him, and that little bit of something that means he'll start to get into form, because what they have to do is stick with him and persist."