•Bayer Leverkusen midfielder Florian Wirtz shoots to score a goal
Liverpool completed the blockbuster signing of Germany forward Florian Wirtz from Bayer Leverkusen yesterday in a deal which could reportedly rise to a Premier League record fee.
It was reported in England that the Premier League champions will pay an initial £100 million ($134 million) for Wirtz, comfortably surpassing their own record outlay, reports AFP.
A further £16 million in performance-related add-ons would make it a British record deal.
However, reports in Germany suggested the fee could be even higher, starting at 130 million euros (£111 million, $149 million) with add-ons taking it to 150 million euros.
One of European football’s elite young stars, Wirtz has been hailed as one of the “best in the world” by former Leverkusen coach and ex-Liverpool midfielder Xabi Alonso, who is the new boss of Real Madrid.
“I’m really excited to have a new adventure in front of me. This was also a big point of my thoughts: that I want to have something completely new, to go out of the Bundesliga and to join the Premier League,” Wirtz told the club’s website.
“In the end, we want to be successful. Last season they won the Premier League so my goal is for sure to win it again and also to go further in the Champions League. I’m really ambitious.”
The 22-year-old played a crucial role in Leverkusen’s greatest season as they claimed a first-ever Bundesliga title and the German Cup in 2023/24 without losing a single game under Alonso.
Their only defeat that season, during which Wirtz was crowned Bundesliga player of the year, came in the Europa League final to Atalanta, denying Leverkusen a memorable treble.
Bayern Munich restored their grip on the German game last season, with Leverkusen a distant second, and Wirtz is joining an exodus from the BayArena.
Netherlands defender Jeremie Frimpong has already made the move from Leverkusen to Liverpool last month.
After largely keeping their powder dry in the transfer market during Arne Slot’s first season in charge, the Reds are splashing out to strengthen a side that romped to a record-equalling 20th English top-flight title.
Bournemouth left-back Milos Kerkez is poised to make the move to Anfield in a £40 million deal.
Liverpool have also been linked with Newcastle striker Alexander Isak and Crystal Palace centre-back Marc Guehi.
Where Wirtz’s fits into Slot’s plans remains to be seen.
He largely played behind a central striker at Leverkusen and has operated from a wider role for Germany.
A return of 57 goals and 65 assists in 197 games for Leverkusen is evidence that he carries a threat both as a creator and a goalscorer.
Liverpool are already blessed with an abundance of forward options, with Mohamed Salah, Luis Diaz and Cody Gakpo all offering a goal threat.
However, Diogo Jota, Darwin Nunez and Federico Chiesa now face even stiffer competition to get into Slot’s starting line-up, raising the prospect of Liverpool selling some of that trio to free up further transfer resources.
