Florian Wirtz was “brutally denied” his first official goal for Liverpool after his side’s late equaliser against Sunderland was officially recorded as an Nordi Mukiele own goal, according to a report from The Mirror.
As Liverpool pressed for a late goal, Wirtz “danced his way past defenders in the box to fire a deflected shot in,” which he initially “believed he had finally broken his duck” with.
The Premier League Match Centre later released a statement confirming the ruling. Their post to X read:
“The goal accreditation panel has adjudged Liverpool’s 81st minute goal as a Mukiele own goal.” Replays showed a “hefty touch from Mukiele” altered the ball’s direction, leaving Sunderland’s goalkeeper Robin Roefs “with no chance.”
The article also notes that the German, who joined for a staggering £116 million from Bayer Leverkusen, “perhaps knew his fate, given the muted celebration.”
Despite the disappointment, Wirtz remained focused on the result, telling reporters when informed about the decision: “Doesn’t matter today, we draw and wanted to win today. We were unlucky.”
Wirtz’s manager, Arne Slot, praised the midfielder’s contribution, stating, “After a very positive performance from Florian, I can acknowledge that but I also want to emphasise the team performance was much better.”
Slot admitted keeping Wirtz in the team was “maybe a bit of a risk” as he had been out for one-and-a-half weeks and had only trained once, but stated “some situations ask for an exception, and today was one of them.”