‘Liverpool’s best player’ – Paul Gorst praises 34-touch Reds magician in first half v West Ham

Paul Gorst singled out one Liverpool player for praise during the first half of the Reds’ Premier League clash against West Ham on Sunday afternoon.

Arne Slot’s side have travelled to the capital in search of a morale-boosting victory, and although they didn’t make the breakthrough prior to half-time, their overall performance has been an improvement from recent games.

Among the four changes to the champions’ starting XI was a recall for Florian Wirtz after a minor injury, and the summer signing from Bayer Leverkusen was one of the visitors’ standout players in the first half against the Irons.

Gorst praises Wirtz’s performance against West Ham

The 22-year-old may have fancied his chances of claiming an assist near the half-our mark when he burst forward and picked out Cody Gakpo in the penalty area, but the Dutchman’s first touch was too heavy and the opportunity went begging.

Writing on the Liverpool Echo‘s live matchday blog in response to that opening, Gorst declared (14:38): ‘This been a very encouraging half hour from Wirtz. He’s been Liverpool’s best player, always on the move with the half-turns in an effort to make things happen.’

Wirtz has been the star turn for Liverpool so far today

The German playmaker hasn’t quite made the impact in England that many would’ve expected at the time of his summer transfer, having failed to register a goal contribution in his first 11 appearances in the Premier League.

Didi Hamann even claimed that the 22-year-old could conceivably be loaned out in January, but that seems incredibly unlikely, and there’s absolutely no chance of it happening based on his first-half performance against West Ham.

Gorst praised Wirtz’s ‘clever movement and deft touches’ and said that our number 7 is ‘making things happen’ for the Reds, albeit without altering the scoreboard prior to half-time – that may have been different had Alexander Isak gotten on the end of a particularly inviting delivery across the six-yard box.

As per Sofascore, the German ended the first half with a 97% passing accuracy (28/29 completed), one shot on target, one successful dribble, one key pass and 34 touches of the ball.

The 22-year-old’s G/A output mightn’t be at the level that we’d like just yet, but surely that’ll improve soon if he continues to exert as much influence on games as he’s done today. He just needs a bit more luck for his excellent creative play to reap the rewards it deserves.