Kelly: What does an ideal day off look like? How do you like to escape football?
Florian: Since the summer, I like to play padel. I went a few times with some players here.
Kelly: Who plays from Liverpool?
Florian: Dominik [Szoboszlai], Milos [Kerkez]… Jeremie [Frimpong] says he’s good but I’ve not seen him.
Kelly: Are you any good?
Florian: I’m not that good. If you ask the others, I am better than Jeremie. He knows for sure I am better than him!
Kelly: What else do you like to do?
Florian: I like to have a nice breakfast. I love breakfast – scrambled eggs, pancakes… I can eat a lot. The nutritionist is very happy with me because I eat a lot of fuel for the games.
Kelly: So you have breakfast and play padel… anything else?
Florian: Maybe just chill… play PlayStation. I have a dog as well – Zoomer… but it’s not after Paw Patrol. Everyone asks me about that.
Kelly: What’s it named after then?
Florian: Just random.
Kelly: What were you like as a youngster? What kind of child was Florian Wirtz?
Florian: My parents always say I was very shy and always hiding behind my sisters. I was one of 10. I am the youngest.
Kelly: What was that like growing up?
Florian: To be honest, it’s not that bad because everyone cares about you… you are the youngest. When my parents wanted to go out, they could come and look after me. It’s nice to have so many loved ones on birthdays and Christmas.
Kelly: I’m told you are not the only footballer of your siblings…
Florian: My sister [Juliane] plays for Werder Bremen. She also played for Brauweiler, Cologne and Leverkusen. We played at the same time for three clubs.
Kelly: What was that like for you?
Florian: It was nice because sometimes we could drive together to training. I am very proud of her – she is doing good. I’m happy for her because she is having a very good season with her team.
Kelly: You are not at the same club now or even in the same country… are you still speaking about football and watching each other’s games?
Florian: My sister always wishes me good luck for the games and calls or texts me. I always try to watch her games if I can. It’s nice we have the same ambitions and the same way to think about football. I’m happy she is a footballer so we have something in common and it’s nice.
Kelly: If you could only achieve one more thing in your career, what would it be?
Florian: World champion.
Kelly: World Cup this summer?
Florian: It will be difficult, but let’s see. We all go there to win it. It will be difficult but hopefully we can go far.