Liverpool secured a hard-fought comeback victory against a resilient Brentford side on Saturday, clinching a win after falling behind. The result provided a necessary boost following the team’s first league defeat of the season against Manchester City. Despite the positive outcome, the performance ignited fresh debate surrounding the tactical role of playmaker Florian Wirtz within manager Andoni Iraola’s system. But does the German playmaker remain boss Andoni Iraola’s greatest conundrum, florian Wirtz was instrumental as Liverpool returned to winning ways in the Premier League at Brentford on Saturday. The key dilemma facing Iraola was again evident in west London on Saturday. Haaland scores twice as Man City beat Ipswich. You’re going to get hurt, against better teams. According to iraola, Sport: “When you come here, you see the results of Brentford at home and you have to be ready for this kind of battle. Always, the priority is foundation, defence, stability, being hard to beat.
Wirtz, who joined the club in June 2025 for a record fee of £116m, has faced significant scrutiny over his form. Wirtz has come in for criticism amid his struggles to replicate the form which persuaded the Reds to pay Bayer Leverkusen what was a club record £116m in June 2025.
Former Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard recently suggested that the 23-year-old might need a period away from the starting lineup to regain confidence. According to liverpool legend Steven Gerrard even, This week that the 23-year-old could benefit from being taken out of the team altogether, to overcome what the club’s former captain perceives as a lack of confidence. Injured Martinez taken to hospital as Chelsea beat Everton.
However, Wirtz delivered a standout display against Brentford, creating nine chances from open play—a feat unmatched by any Premier League player over the past six seasons. It just looks a little bit open, at the moment.
He equaled the record set by Sadio Mane in January 2021 and became the first player in over 15 years to reach that tally in an away fixture since Samir Nasri in 2011. For Liverpool against Burnley, in January 2021 (also nine), the last player to create as many chances in a single game in the competition was Sadio Mane.
Beyond his creativity, Wirtz assisted the equalizing goal for Munoz, marking his second goal involvement in seven league games this term and his second consecutive match with an assist.
Despite these statistics, pundit Danny Murphy argued that relying on Wirtz as a number 10 leaves the team vulnerable. Murphy noted that the setup forces the two holding midfielders to cover excessive space, making the side appear too easy to play against and leaving them defensively fragile. So they’re relying heavily on the two midfield players to try and cover so much space, they’re playing with two wingers and Wirtz at 10. He is level with Brighton ‘s Pascal Gross on 18. They don’t look solid and don’t look together in terms of shape,” Murphy said. Where Wirtz is struggling to impact games, put three midfielders in, instead of a number 10.
The match saw Liverpool capitalize on a man advantage after Brentford were reduced to 10 players before halftime. The visitors registered 21 total attempts, with 14 of those coming during the second half. While the win moved Liverpool to fifth in the Premier League, Iraola expressed concerns over his squad’s physical state. The victory marked the team’s first away win after trailing since December 2023, ending a winless streak of 19 games when conceding the opening goal. Ending a run of 19 winless away games when going 1-0 behind, the Spaniard oversaw the Reds’ first away league win after conceding first since December 2023. Every throw-in and every free-kick can be a problem, when we go 2-1.
Managing the roster has become increasingly difficult for the Spanish manager. The victory came at a cost as Dominik Szoboszlai and Jeremie Frimpong sustained injuries during the encounter. Iraola characterized the current stretch as a delicate situation, noting the immense demands of playing four games in just 10 days. The team must now shift its focus toward a crucial Champions League clash against Villarreal on Tuesday. The other stuff can follow from there. It’s very, very demanding, we were talking about this run of four games in 10 days.
Reflecting on the match, Iraola acknowledged the physical intensity Brentford imposed, stating that every set-piece remained a potential problem even after Liverpool took the lead.
Although Wirtz excelled in final-third entries and passing accuracy, internal metrics showed he lost possession 19 times, highlighting the ongoing trade-offs within the team’s current structure. Florian Wirtz completed 53 of the 65 passes he attempted (81.5%) – including a match-leading 38 inside the final third. With a match-leading 12 final-third entries and 37 passes in the final third, he was at the heart of Liverpool ‘s attack. However, only Milos Kerkez (20) lost possession on more occasions than Wirtz (19) among Liverpool players, and he won just one of his nine duels.
As the season progresses, Iraola faces the challenge of balancing his attacking ambition with the need for greater defensive solidity to avoid being exposed by tougher opponents.
