Florian Wirtz is Germany’s key creative force. This is what Liverpool long to see

Basel – In a match that felt more like a fever dream than a friendly, Florian Wirtz delivered the kind of performance that turns questions into exclamations and leaves scouts scrambling for new superlatives. Germany edged Switzerland 4-3 on Wednesday night, but the scoreline only hints at the story: every German goal ran through the 22-year-old’s boots, and every Swiss counter only underlined how desperately the hosts chased his shadow.

The highlight reel began after 17 minutes. Stationed on the left corner of the box, Wirtz accepted Serge Gnabry’s pass, glanced up, and arced a right-footed whip that sailed over the retreating back line, kissed the crossbar and dropped inside the far post. Jonathan Tah clasped his head; Leroy Sané raised his arms; Wirtz simply turned away, expressionless, as if greatness were a mundane chore.

“I’d be lying if I said I meant it to go exactly there,” he admitted later, “but I’ll take it.”

Whether by design or devilish fortune, the strike set the tone. Within half an hour Wirtz had added two assists: a near-replica delivery that Tah thundered home, and a slide-rule pass that Gnabry dinked over Gregor Kobel. After the interval he crowned his evening, collecting 20 yards out and curling a second, decidedly intentional, effort beyond the goalkeeper’s reach.

Four goals, four fingerprints. “Probably my best international match,” Wirtz conceded, and few in the St. Jakob-Park press room disagreed.

The exhibition mattered because Germany enter uncharted territory. For the first time since Euro 2008, a major tournament will kick off without Manuel Neuer, Toni Kroos, Ilkay Gundogan or Thomas Muller in the squad. Julian Nagelsmann’s side is a canvas of maybes: Oliver Baumann’s reliability in goal, Leon Goretzka’s suitability as midfield metronome, Joshua Kimmich’s positional future, the readiness of Jamal Musiala’s knee, the pecking order between Sané and Gnabry, the temptation to fast-track Bayern prodigy Lennart Karl.

Yet amid the uncertainty, Wirtz offers something increasingly rare—clarity. He is the fixed point around which the attack orbits, the player who reduces tactical whiteboards to a single instruction: give him the ball.

Liverpool supporters watching from Merseyside could be forgiven for a pang of impatience. The club’s £116 million summer purchase from Bayer Leverkusen has flickered rather than blazed at Anfield, his role shifting between central playmaker, wide creator and hybrid depending on Arne Slot’s weekly puzzle. The malaise that has afflicted the squad has made it hard to determine whether Wirtz is victim or contributor.

For Germany, by contrast, the blueprint looks settled. Wirtz operated nominally as a No. 10 but drifted left with impunity, the same licence he has craved on club duty. The difference: here, runners understood his cadence, the passes arrived with conviction, and the narrative bent to his will.

Nagelsmann will fly home with defensive headaches—three Swiss goals were three too many—but also with the solace of a new talisman. The last two World Cups ended in group-stage humiliation; Germany cannot afford a third. If they are to re-announce themselves on the global stage, Wirtz will be the voice of the reintroduction.

As the mixed-zone lights dimmed, one question lingered: can Liverpool find a way to import this version of Florian Wirtz back to Anfield? Until they do, the footage from Basel will serve simultaneously as promise and provocation.