Wirtz on ankle injury and Liverpool win: ‘Things weren’t so good’

Liverpool midfielder Florian Wirtz says he is ignoring people who “judge” him and is “even happier” with Sunday’s 2-0 win at home to Brighton & Hove Albion because of the Reds’ run of two victories in their first six league games of the season.

Seeking a first home league win since April 25, Liverpool took a 17th-minute lead when one of Wirtz’s Germany teammates, Pascal Gross, applied the deciding touch to the £116 million playmaker’s shot, followed by Alexander Isak striking his sixth Premier League goal of the season four minutes later.

“It’s really enjoyable, I have to say,” Wirtz told BBC Sport, also suggesting that he will not be sidelined by an ankle injury that caused his substitution.

“Many things weren’t so good in the last month, so I’m even happier that it’s going well at the moment. We are on a good [path] to get where we want to be.”

“We had the right mentality [against Brighton]. Especially in the, first half or the first 30 minutes, we were on top of them and really good in the duels, also creating a lot of chances.”

Liverpool vs Brighton: Wirtz ‘just wants to play’

Liverpool broke their club record at the time to sign Wirtz from Leverkusen in June 2025, making his return of five goals and three assists in 33 league appearances seem another underwhelming part of their meek title defence.

“Maybe I’m just an interesting guy,” Wirtz said of scrutiny around his displays. “I just play my football – if people want to talk about or judge me, that’s their job.

“I’m not focusing on that; I just want to play football and I cannot do more.”

Wirtz scored his first goal of the campaign in the 4-3 home win over Villarreal in the Champions League on Tuesday.

“I would have preferred that the [first] goal [against Brighton] was given to me,” Wirtz reflected. “But it’s like this now.”

What’s next? Liverpool fixtures

Liverpool – perhaps without Wirtz – are next in action at home to Chelsea in the EFL Cup fourth round on October 28.

They then host defending champions Arsenal in the league on Sunday.

Premier League results this weekend: Matchweek 8

Friday, October 23

• Ipswich Town 1-1 Nottingham Forest

Saturday, October 24

• Aston Villa 2-1 Manchester City
• Arsenal 2-0 Everton
• Coventry City 0-1 Fulham
• Chelsea 0-2 Tottenham Hotspur

Sunday, October 25

• Crystal Palace 0-2 Newcastle
• Hull City 1-1 Brentford
• Liverpool 2-0 Brighton
• Man United 0-3 Bournemouth
• Sunderland 0-0 Leeds

Full updated Premier League table

Here’s the updated table, with Liverpool a point behind the Seagulls and six off the pace.

Premier League 2026

England

#	Team	Played	Won	Drawn	Lost	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Last 5
1	Manchester City	8	7	0	1	20	9	11	21	L W W W W
2	Arsenal	8	7	0	1	13	5	8	21	W W W L W
3	Brighton	8	5	1	2	23	7	16	16	L W W W W
4	Liverpool	8	4	3	1	11	8	3	15	W W L W D
5	Chelsea	8	4	1	3	17	15	2	13	L W W L D
6	Brentford	8	2	5	1	14	9	5	11	D L D W D
7	Newcastle	8	3	2	3	12	14	-2	11	W L L W L
8	Aston Villa	8	3	2	3	9	12	-3	11	W W D W L
9	Leeds	7	2	4	1	9	6	3	10	D D L D W
10	Hull City	8	2	4	2	9	8	1	10	D L D L D
11	Everton	8	2	4	2	8	9	-1	10	L L D W D
12	Ipswich	8	3	1	4	12	16	-4	10	D L W L W
13	Bournemouth	8	2	3	3	12	13	-1	9	W W L L D
14	Tottenham	8	2	3	3	8	10	-2	9	W W D L D
15	Fulham	8	2	2	4	8	10	-2	8	W W L D D
16	Manchester United	8	1	4	3	10	13	-3	7	L D D D L
17	Crystal Palace	8	2	1	5	9	19	-10	7	L L W D L
18	Nottingham Forest	8	1	3	4	6	10	-4	6	D L L L W
19	Coventry	8	2	0	6	6	15	-9	6	L L W W L
20	Sunderland	7	1	1	5	6	14	-8	4	D L L L L

• Position 1, 2, 3, 4 : Promotion – Champions League (League phase)
• Position 5 : Promotion – Europa League (League phase)
• Position 18, 19, 20 : Relegation – Championship