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Florian Wirtz of Bayer Leverkusen during the UEFA Champions League 2024/25 League Phase MD4 match between Liverpool FC and Bayer 04 Leverkusen at Anfield(Image: Robbie Jay Barratt - AMA/Getty Images)

Should Liverpool complete a club-record deal to sign Florian Wirtz, he will become only the seventh player - following quickly in the footsteps of Jeremie Frimpong - to play for both the Reds and Bayer Leverkusen.

A deal to take the Germany international to Anfield is not yet agreed, but he has made it clear that he wishes to join Arne Slot’s side.

Liverpool is a big step up for him and I'm very curious to see how good Flo is in the Premier League.

“I think he is (ready to move to the Premier League).

Yes, it is good to take the step and also take a step to another competition.

“He is a champion of the Bundesliga, he won the cup in Germany, so then it's good to test yourself in another league.

“In my opinion, he will be a diamond in the Premier League as well.”

Bayern Munich had previously been favourites to sign Wirtz, with Liverpool initially under the impression that the playmaker would stay put in Germany.

Yet Meijer is not surprised to see Wirtz instead opt for a move to Anfield over the Bavarian giants.

“(I’m) not really (surprised that he’s chosen Liverpool),” he said.

The payment will be very good in England.”

Leverkusen have placed an £126m asking-price on Wirtz’s head, while Liverpool’s latest offer £113m is already a club-record bid.

Meijer acknowledges it is a massive transfer fee, but points out that is what it takes to sign special talents - even if it remains to be seen how well Wirtz could actually adapt to the physical nature of the Premier League.

“That's a ridiculous amount of money, but he's the biggest prospect in the Bundesliga,” he said.

“Musiala and Wirtz are the two diamonds in the Bundesliga.

“He's young, he's good, he has skills that nobody else has and he played some fantastic seasons at Leverkusen at a young age.

“I'm curious about his abilities to get used to the tempo and alertness and the hardness of the Premier League.

“In the Bundesliga he knows every stadium, he knows his opponents, he knows his weaknesses and his strengths and now he comes in another competition with better defenders, with harder defenders, with players maybe also with more experience.

“I'm curious to see how he reacts to this.

He is on a special level, that's why it is also a very special price that somebody has to pay to get him.”

There has also been debate about where Wirtz is likely to play at Liverpool, whether he’d be stationed as a number 10 in place of Dominik Szoboszlai or could instead play off the left or as a false nine.

Meijer insists Wirtz has to play as a number 10 behind a striker, and points to the player’s defensive work-rate when sharing his belief that the German is ‘perfect’ for Liverpool.

“He has a freer role at Leverkusen, he's the 10, but he can also play from the left side,” he said.