Bayern's wounded Florian Wirtz claim doesn't stack up as Liverpool man gets what he really needs
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Florian Wirtz scored a brilliant free-kick in Germany's win over Northern IrelandWhen he came to survey his options at the beginning of the summer, it would have been the easiest thing in the world for Florian Wirtz, at the first major junction of his fledgling career, to have taken the easy option.
For the Germany international, there were two that would have been considered the safer choices as he weighed up interest from Manchester City, Bayern Munich and Liverpool alongside the forlorn hope from Bayer Leverkusen over a contract extension.
Having become the jewel of Germany under the tutelage of Xabi Alonso, an extended stay at the BayArena might have appealed, but with die Werkself's squad set to be decimated by sales alongside the eventual departure of the Real Madrid-bound Alonso, that was eventually ruled out.
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A move to Bayern, for many, seemed something of a no-brainer.
So it was somewhat jarring for those at the Allianz in the summer when they were beaten to Wirtz by Liverpool, who made the 22-year-old the most expensive footballer in Anfield history when he signed for an initial £100m in June.
“We’re very satisfied at FC Bayern," Bayern's honorary president Uli Hoeness said of their window.
Of course, we would have liked to have Florian Wirtz, but we’d never have bought him for €150million.
"We offered £47.7million for Nick Woltemade, while Stuttgart wanted £65million.
It’s like Monopoly these days."
It's unclear if the Wirtz valuation has been deliberately inflated by Hoeness but Liverpool paid an initial £100m for the attacking midfielder with a further £16m in success-based add-ons.
Considering the Bundesliga champions paid £100m for England captain Harry Kane at the age of 30, the Bayern chief's insistence that the Reds star's price tag was too exorbitant doesn't necessarily stack up.
Seeing both Wirtz and Woltemade slip through their grasps this summer has no doubt left Bayern feeling wounded, given their long-established history of cherry-picking the best of the best from home soil.
But has Wirtz's indirect snubbing of Bayern led to some overly critical appraisals of his performances for the national side?
The player himself admitted the performance against Slovakia was far from acceptable, saying: "We all know the last game was a disaster."
Maybe, by choosing Liverpool over Bayern, Wirtz had inadvertently opened himself up as an easy target for the German media whenever things are going according to plan for die Mannschaft.
Without the natural groundswell of goodwill and support that comes from being an integral figure for the biggest club in the country in Bayern, the Anfield attacker might have to get used to being singled out at times as a result.
It's far easier for the media to criticise when the player does not play for club the size of Bayern, who have an army of former players and pundits working in the media to offer a robust defence of specific performances.
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It's why Wirtz's stunning free-kick against the Northern Irish was a perfect riposte on Sunday evening and in the meantime, he will find all the backing and support he needs back on Merseyside.