Florian Wirtz: A New Role Under Andoni Iraola

Florian Wirtz has barely broken sweat in pre-season, but he already looks and sounds like a player reborn under Andoni Iraola.

The German playmaker returned to Liverpool’s training camp only a couple of days ago. New manager, new ideas, new role. And crucially for Wirtz, a clean slate.

A No.10 With a Point to Prove

Iraola has wasted no time in making one thing clear: Wirtz will live in the middle of the pitch, not on the fringes of it. No more shuttling out wide. He is the No.10.

It’s exactly what the former Bayer Leverkusen star wanted to hear, and the early sessions have hit the right note.

"I just can say that the training is really fun," Wirtz said. "I enjoyed every training [session]. We play a lot of games and possessions, and that’s exactly what I like. I just enjoyed it until now."

There’s a lightness to his words that was missing last season. His first year at Anfield produced seven goals and 10 assists — respectable numbers, especially in a side that never truly caught fire — but he doesn’t hide from the reality of how it felt.

"Of course I wasn’t happy at all (last year) — about the season, I mean. I was not unhappy every day when I came to training, but I think we expected much more."

That line cuts to the heart of Liverpool’s campaign. Functional, occasionally exciting, but short of what a player of Wirtz’s ambition and talent demands.

So he is treating this summer as a reset.

"I think we start from zero this season. Also here with this training camp, it’s a new start. We have a lot of things to do better this season and I’m very excited for season two."

Iraola’s Blueprint Takes Shape

The early days of a new regime can often feel chaotic. Not this time. Iraola’s sessions, built around games and possession work, seem tailor-made for a technician like Wirtz.

High tempo. Constant involvement. The ball never far from his feet.

For Liverpool, the idea is simple: put Wirtz in the pockets between the lines and let him dictate. Last season he often had to come deep or drift wide to influence play. This time, the structure is being bent around him.

And there is another key difference. When Wirtz looks up, he now sees a fully fit Alexander Isak ahead of him.

Isak Ready to Lead the Line

If Wirtz is the conductor, Isak is the spearhead. After his exploits at the World Cup and a careful return to training, the striker has already caught Iraola’s eye.

"I think he has come in a good place," Iraola said of Isak earlier this week. "I think he was good in the World Cup. I saw him comfortable. First training [sessions] here, I think I’ve seen a good version of Alex.

"Still, it’s very early because he has just started training, but I hope he can have some minutes against Leeds and build properly a proper pre-season.

"It’s not going to be very long but he will have three or four weeks of quality training, I hope, and we can put him in a good place because he is going to be massive for us this season."

A sharp Isak, fed by a central Wirtz, changes the entire complexion of Liverpool’s attack. The potential arrival of Bradley Barcola from PSG to occupy a wing only adds another layer of threat, if the club can push that deal over the line.

Suddenly, Wirtz is not just part of the system. He is at the heart of it.

Club, Country, and Klopp

There is another storyline quietly running alongside his club reset. While Iraola shapes Liverpool, Jurgen Klopp is about to shape Germany.

Wirtz will play under two new managers this season. The club media interview turned, inevitably, to Klopp’s return to the national team.

"It’s very, very cool that [Klopp is] there now," Wirtz said. "I’ve not spoken to him yet but a lot of people here at the club told me about him, that he is a fantastic guy. All of Liverpool loves him. So, I’m very excited to meet him in a few months."

The symmetry is striking. The man who defined an era at Anfield will now oversee Wirtz’s international future, just as a new face in Iraola tries to build a different kind of Liverpool around him.

Last season, Wirtz arrived as the bright new thing in an uncertain side. This season, he walks into a dressing room with a defined role, a manager who trusts his instincts, and a striker in Isak who can turn his passes into goals.

He called it “starting from zero.” For Liverpool, the real question is how high he can take them from there.