Florian Wirtz joining Liverpool was one of the biggest surprises of the summer transfer window.
Although rumours started to emerge at the beginning of June, with clubs such as Manchester City and Bayern Munich also showing an interest in him, nobody expected the Reds to be the ones to come out on top.
In the end, an initial fee worth £100million was agreed upon with an extra £16million in add-ons being paid to Bayer Leverkusen if Liverpool win the Premier League or the Champions League four times.
And, although Wirtz may have struggled a tad since joining Liverpool, now that he’s scored a goal on international duty, his confidence may have been brought back, which is obviously good news for Arne Slot’s men.
Because, at the end of the day, the fact that he contributed to over 30 goals across all competitions last season shows how good a player he actually is.
And, now that he’s joined, Michael Ballack has given his thoughts on Liverpool’s chances of winning the Champions League this season.
Michael Ballack doesn’t think Liverpool will win the Champions League
It goes without saying that, on paper, Liverpool have one of the best teams in the world.
Everywhere you look among Slot’s ranks, there are world-class players with some of their back-ups being equally as good.
Wirtz is no exception to this, with the likes of Dominik Szoboszlai and Alexis Mac Allister both able to play in the role that the German currently occupies.
However, when speaking to Sport Bild, due to all the changes that have occurred at Anfield this season, Ballack doesn’t think that the Reds will be able to win the Champions League this term.
“Liverpool was already among the favourites last season,” he said.
“Now the claim thinking with the obligations has been replaced by Alexander Isak, Florian Wirtz or Hugo Ekitiké (the trio alone costs 365 million euros without bonus payments) is underpinned.
“The investments are a clear announcement that they want to win the Champions League. Nevertheless, Liverpool is not the ultimate contender for the title.
“The upgrade also brings with it a lot of expectations. And what should not be underestimated: a new hierarchy must form in the team.
“This is always a process that can take time. This has been shown by the past, the best examples being Paris St-Germain or Manchester City, which, despite their investments, also needed some time to win the Champions League.”
Liverpool must prove the doubters wrong and win as much as possible
Although Liverpool may be the favourites to win the Premier League this season, their main goal should be to win the Champions League.
If they manage to do that, then it’s undeniable that they’re the best team in Europe, and the fact that they won the top-flight title last term means that they’ll likely want to win the Champions League more.
Indeed, before winning anything is considered, Slot must ensure that his team have good relationships across the board.
It was clear in their opening games of the season that each player needs to get used to how the others play before the Reds’ fans will see the best of their first-team squad.
At the moment, it’s anyone’s guess what could happen but, if Liverpool don’t at least come away with some sort of silverware this season, it’ll be a massive disappointment.
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