Liverpool haven’t had to wait long for a response from Bayer Leverkusen to their latest offer for Florian Wirtz.
On Friday, The Athletic reported that the Reds had submitted an ‘improved second bid’ to the Bundesliga runners-up worth up to £109m, ‘a top-end amount’ comprising a guaranteed fee and potential add-ons.
Christian Falk has revealed that the 22-year-old would prefer a move to Anfield over Bayern Munich due to Arne Slot convincing him that he’d have ‘ownership of the number 10 role’ with the Premier League champions, something he couldn’t be guarantees at the Allianz Arena due to Jamal Musiala’s presence.
Leverkusen reject Liverpool’s latest offer for Wirtz
As reported by Paul Joyce for The Times on Friday night, Liverpool have received a swift reply from Leverkusen regarding their latest attempt to sign Wirtz.
The £109m offer hasn’t been accepted by the Bundesliga outfit, although the journalist insisted that the significance of the bid ‘should not be underestimated’.
There’s also a hopeful note for Reds fans, who are advised that ‘there is no sense that an accord will not be reached over the coming days’.
Liverpool could end up spending around £125m to sign Wirtz
Reliable reports had indicated that Leverkusen set an asking price of €150m (£126.5m) for Wirtz, so Liverpool would’ve been aware from the get-go that they’d likely need to enter the unchartered territory of a £100m+ signing if they’re to secure the German’s signature.
FSG were never likely to dive in head-first with an offer to match the Bundesliga club’s reported price tag, instead coming in lower to test the waters with the BayArena hierarchy and perhaps see how much compromise they could achieve.
It seems that, should the deal get done, the eventual fee will come in at around the £125m mark that Die Werkself were demanding. To spend that much on one player would represent an extraordinary show of faith from LFC, but the value of their latest offer clearly shows how high they’re willing to go in order to land him.
With Wirtz himself keen on joining Liverpool, an improved third bid might just be enough to get the green light from Leverkusen, who’ll recognise that it could be nigh-on impossible for them to keep hold of the player for next season.
The fee they’ll eventually bank from selling the 22-year-old (on top of the £30m they’re set to receive for Jeremie Frimpong) could fund a transfer bonanza for Erik ten Hag this summer, and this has the makings of a transaction which’ll ultimately satisfy all parties, assuming there are no nasty curveballs thrown into the mix.
