Liverpool given green light to sign £95m Firmino successor as Ratcliffe leads Man Utd charge
Liverpool have been given a boost in their chase of Bayer Leverkusen star Florian Wirtz, as a report reveals Jurgen Klopp’s plan for the £95m playmaker.
Wirtz is under contract with the Bundesliga side until the summer of 2027 and has 29 goals and 38 assists in 120 appearances.
Leverkusen are hoping to retain his services for another season, but Sky Germany claim the prospect of playing for a top club is likely to ‘lure him’ away from his boyhood side.
Florian Plettenburg has revealed that the German side are now resigned to selling their star man at the end of the season due to the widespread interest from top European clubs.
“Bayer 04 hopes that he will stay for one more season,” Florian Plettenberg wrote on X. “Bosses are convinced that he will definitely leave the club, at the latest, in the summer of 2025.”
Bayern Munich are very interested in Wirtz, though – contrary to previous reports – the idea of heading to the Premier League is said to be attractive to the player, with Liverpool and Manchester United set to battle it out for his signature, with Manchester City also monitoring his situation closely.
Recent reports have claimed United are making the biggest play to secure his services, with incoming new investor Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Paul Mitchell – who looks set to become their first sporting director – confirmed admirers, though it’s not entirely clear how Wirtz would fit into their team. Given their difficulty in finding a spot for Mason Mount, it would be a strange move.
Pep Guardiola is said to view Wirtz as a possible successor to Kevin De Bruyne, and TEAMtalk claim Klopp also has a specific plan for the Germany international.
Dominik Szoboszlai, Alexis Mac Allister, Wataru Endo and Ryan Gravenberch all arrived in the summer as the Reds underwent a midfield overhaul, but the report claims Klopp views Wirtz as more of a forward option.
The report states: ‘Klopp sees Wirtz as an ideal false nine and the player who can ultimately succeed Roberto Firmino as the beating heart of the Reds’ attack.’
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