The wait lasted 190 days. More than six months after signing, approaching half-time in his 23rd appearance, with the 27th shot he attempted as a Liverpool player, Florian Wirtz scored. It is safe to say they did not expect the £100m buy to open his account in the bitter Christmas cold but his drought explained the reaction at Anfield. “I am quite sure it was a relief for him,” said Arne Slot.
There was further relief when the final whistle went as Liverpool laboured to victory against bottom-of-the-table Wolves; it transpired that Wirtz delivered the decider whereas, when he scored, a rout felt feasible. There was a significance for the side and for the statement signing who, with his slow start to life at Anfield, became a symbolic figure in unwanted ways.
