Liverpool invested heavily to secure Florian Wirtz’s signature, an initial £100m rising to £116m with add-ons, but the new No.?7 says the cost has no impact on his mindset.

“I’m a player who needs freedom on the pitch and the manager gives that to me,” Wirtz said (via reports by The Athletic).

“Of course, I have to respect the position and the players around me.

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“I just want to play football and how much money the clubs pay between each other doesn’t matter.”

On his first appearance at Anfield against Athletic Bilbao, operating in the No.?10 role, the 22-year-old linked well with Mohamed Salah and nearly scored twice during a lively showing before being subbed to warm applause.

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Despite facing a different ball tempo in friendlies, including a goal against Yokohama F.

Marinos, Wirtz expects Premier League football to be more intense than the Bundesliga.

I’m really looking forward to playing in the Premier League.

There will of course be some differences from the German league but that’s something I can learn.”

He has leaned on fellow Germans and others with Bundesliga experience, Dominik Szoboszlai, Ibrahima Konate, Wataru Endo and Ryan Gravenberch, for adaptation advice.

“it’s good that we have a few new players who have come (to the club) at the same time, so we can connect a little bit and talk to each other about how we feel.”

Looking ahead, Wirtz knows Liverpool must defend the Premier League title, a challenge he’s familiar with from helping Leverkusen to the Bundesliga crown in 2023/24.

“Of course, the big challenge is to take the title again.