Florian Wirtz is expected to leave Bayer Leverkusen this summer, with Manchester City among the clubs interested in signing him.
Florian Wirtz’s transfer saga has taken a new turn following reports that his family met another English club after visiting Manchester City The German international Wirtz is one of the hottest players in the world, having scored 34 goals and provided 35 assists in all competitions for Bayer Leverkusen, who won the Bundesliga with an extraordinary unbeaten season under Xabi Alonso in 2024.
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Wirtz showed his class on the big stage with six goals and five Man of the Match awards in his debut season in the Champions League, and is expected to step up to bigger challenges this summer alongside his outgoing manager Alonso.
Big clubs on the hunt
Newly crowned Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich want to make him their next high-profile purchase from a rival club, while Real Madrid are also linked with the 22-year-old.
Manchester City are also big admirers of Wirtz, and on Tuesday, The Times reported that he and his parents – who act as his agents – flew to Manchester to see the club’s facilities.
According to the report, Wirtz flew from Germany by private jet and returned to Maastricht Aachen Airport in the Netherlands. Christian Falk from BILD claims that City were not the only English club Wirtz and his family met.
The Wirtz family have also reportedly held talks with Liverpool, who have now entered the race for Wirtz while also working on a transfer for his teammate Jeremie Frimpong.
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Bayern believe they have the promise from Wirtz
Falk adds that Bayern are confident that Wirtz will keep his promise to sign for them, but The Times points out that the Bavarian big clubs still have to figure out how to finance the costly transfer.
However, they have been in touch with Wirtz’s father to discuss how he would fit into their system alongside compatriot Jamal Musiala.
Record sales expected
Wirtz is one of the leading candidates to replace Kevin De Bruyne, but the battle for his signature is getting intense.
It is believed that Bayer Leverkusen will ask for around €150 million for Wirtz – which would be a club record in sales. Bayern Munich have already reportedly expressed a willingness to pay 100 million euros.
