Report: Liverpool want £85m player who is 'every bit as good as Bellingham' but Man City have plan to beat them
Today at 06:30 AM
Florian Wirtz has been linked with a move to the Premier League for what feels like forever, with Liverpool one of the main clubs rumoured with an interest in the Bayer Leverkusen star.
The Germany international has been one of the best players in the last 18 months having led Xabi Alonso’s Leverkusen to an unbeaten domestic double, with Wirtz again this season maintaining his incredible level of production in the UEFA Champions League.
With Liverpool interested in signing Wirtz heading into 2025, Anfield could be an ideal destination for the £85m-rated attacking midfielder, especially with the likes of Jamie Carragher predicting that Darwin Nunez could be out next summer.
Yet Manchester City are seemingly planning a deal to beat Liverpool to Wirtz.
Manchester City preparing player + cash deal for Florian Wirtz
According to CaughtOffside, City are prepared to launch an audacious player plus cash deal to sign Wirtz, with James McAtee and Oscar Bobb lined up as two names who could be proposed to Leverkusen in an attempt to sway their decision in selling their star player.
As per the report, Leverkusen are eager on both City players, a factor that could make it easy for Pep Guardiola’s side to beat Liverpool to Wirtz’s signature, with Arsenal also interested in signing the 21-year-old attacking midfielder.
| Florian Wirtz’s 2024/25 stats | Games played | Goals | Assists |
| Bundesliga | 13 | 5 | 4 |
| DFB Pokal/DFB Supercup | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| UEFA Champions League | 6 | 5 | 1 |
| Total | 23 | 10 | 5 |
Indeed, competition to sign Wirtz will be intense in the summer transfer window of 2025, with three Premier League heavyweights all set to clash against one another for the Germany international’s signature.
Yet for Liverpool, they could arguably now have the weakest pitch to sign Wirtz, with City’s proposed deal an enticing one for Leverkusen with Arsenal also in the market for an attack-minded midfielder going into next year.
Who else have Liverpool been linked with going into January?
With Liverpool keen on strengthening four positions in 2025, there’s a good reason to believe that Arne Slot’s side will be busy in the January transfer window, with Trent Alexander-Arnold’s potential departure to Real Madrid in the summer also something to keep in mind.
Indeed, centre-back seems to be the position that Liverpool fans want to see added to in the January transfer window, with Club Brugge youngster Joel Ordonez believed to be wanted by the Reds, though a deal next month could be unlikely.
Away from the defence, another midfielder is also seemingly wanted by the Anfield side, with Liverpool interested in signing Georgiy Sudakov, who could be finally set for a big move away from Shakhtar Donetsk in 2025.
