Florian Wirtz's transfer situation has taken a new twist after reports claimed his family held a meeting with a second English club after Manchester City.
Germany international Wirtz is one of the hottest commodities in world football after scoring 34 goals and registering 35 assists in all competitions for Bayer Leverkusen, who won the Bundesliga with a stunning unbeaten season under Xabi Alonso in 2024.
Wirtz demonstrated his quality on the big stage with six goals and five Man of the Match award wins in his debut Champions League campaign and is widely expected to move on to bigger and better things this summer along with departing manager Alonso.
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Newly crowned Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich are believed to be keen on making him their next high-profile addition from a rival side, while Real Madrid have been linked with the 22-year-old.
But City are also huge admirers of Wirtz and on Tuesday, The Times reported that he and his parents, who act as his agents, flew in to Manchester for a tour of the club's facilities.
Florian Wirtz had meetings with Man City and Liverpool as race hots up
According to the report, Wirtz flew from Germany in a private jet and headed back to Maastricht Aachen Airport in Netherlands.
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However, Christian Falk of BILD claims that City were not the only English side Wirtz and his family met with.
The Wirtz clan are understood to have spoken with Liverpool, who have entered the race for Wirtz while also pressing forward with a move for his teammate Jeremie Frimpong.
Bayern Munich believe Wirtz has promise with them
Falk adds that Bayern are confident Wirtz will honour his promise to sign for them, but The Times notes that the Bavarian giants are still working out how they could cover the cost of the expensive package.
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They have, however, been in touch with Wirtz's father to discuss how he would fit into their system alongside compatriot Jamal Musiala.
Wirtz is a leading contender to replace Kevin De Bruyne but the race for his signature is beginning to heat up.
It's believed Bayer would be looking to make around £126 million from offloading Wirtz in a club-record sale.
Topics: Bayer Leverkusen, Manchester City, Bayern Munich
Josh Lawless