Florian Wirtz scored the winning goal as Liverpool edged nervously past Wolves on Saturday.
The Reds have now won three Premier League matches in a row for the first time since August, but there was nothing convincing about their victory at Anfield.
Amid another slightly torturous display, Wirtz was a shining light, poking home his first ever Liverpool goal and comfortably taking the man of the match award.
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It was a massive moment for the German, who has now registered goal contributions in back-to-back matches for Liverpool.
In an ideal world, Wirtz would not have had to wait more than four months to find the net for the first time, but after finally breaking his duck, Arne Slot has predicted his No. 7 to score many, many more.
Florian Wirtz backed to start scoring regularly
The longer Wirtz has gone without scoring this season, the bigger the monkey on his back has become.
He began to shift it from his shoulders with a lovely assist for Alexander Isak last weekend, and as his poked finish snuck past Jose Sa on Saturday, he flung it emphatically to the floor.
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Liverpool did not especially buy Wirtz for this goal-scoring, but as Slot told Sky Sports post-match, he is now expecting the £100m man to score ‘many more’ for the Reds.
“The team have seen how much he did already for us, creating chances and being so close to a goal,” said the Liverpool head coach.
“Everyone in football knows if you don’t [score] what is said about you. He will go on and score many more goals than one for us. I think Florian did more than only score today.”
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How many will Wirtz score this season?
When Liverpool paid the big money to sign Wirtz in June, nobody could have predicted it would take him until past Christmas to score for the Reds.
The Germany international bagged goals over the past two seasons for Bayer Leverkusen, and while a dip may have been expected, one to this extent certainly had not.
Nevertheless, there is still half a season to play, and with Wirtz now looking likely to step on the gas, there is no reason he cannot hit double figures in the Premier League.
If he can do that, he will go some way to quietening the noise which has surrounded him all season long.
One goal and one assist is not good enough after 18 matches, there’s no getting away from that. But finally, finally Wirtz is off the mark. One step at a time, but we’ve a feeling Slot could be right here.
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