Liverpool midfielder Florian Wirtz will miss Saturday’s 2025/26 Premier League match against West Ham United due to a persistent back injury, and manager Arne Slot said there is no timetable for the German playmaker’s return.
Wirtz was withdrawn from the line-up ahead of last week’s Premier League match at Nottingham Forest after suffering back pain during the warm-up.
«I don’t expect Florian to be available. That is of course a disappointment,» Slot said at a press conference on Friday.
“Anytime a player is not available it’s a disappointment and something I didn’t expect after last week,” he added.
At the time of the injury, Slot said: “We don’t think it’s very serious.”
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The Dutch manager was asked on Friday whether he knows how long Wirtz will be out.
«Not at the moment, and usually when I say that I do know, but I don’t want to share it. But now I honestly don’t know,» Slot said.
Wirtz, who came to Liverpool in a big transfer from Bayer Leverkusen last summer, is a mainstay in Slot’s midfield wsx4.
«In my opinion, it is already a great achievement for him that he has stayed fit for so long because he had to make a step from where he played to Liverpool, to the Premier League. The fact that he always stayed fit says a lot about the mentality and work rate of the player and the performance staff,» said Slot.
Dutch right-back Jeremy Frimpong has trained with the team this week, “so he is available” against West Ham, Slot said.
Frimpong, who struggled with multiple injuries in his first season at Anfield, missed last month with a muscle injury.
Published on February 27, 2026
