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Bayer Leverkusen attacking midfielder Florian Wirtz.(Image: Robbie Jay Barratt - AMA/Getty Images)

Liverpool have submitted a bid worth up to £109m for Bayern Leverkusen star Florian Wirtz to potentially make him the most expensive player of all time at Anfield.

The Germany international had been pursued by Manchester City and Bayern Munich but having seen Pep Guardiola's side fall out of the race at the start of last week, Wirtz's entourage later informed the Bundesliga champions that Liverpool was his preferred destination.

That was the catalyst for the Premier League champions to step up their efforts to bring Witz to Anfield and sporting director Richard Hughes is now overseeing negotiations with his Leverkusen counterpart Simon Rolfes and their managing director Fernando Carro.



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The bid is made up of achievable add-ons and guarantee fees, although it is unclear at this stage what the initial sum would be to bring the 22-year-old to Merseyside.

It is thought Leverkusen are holding out for closer to £115m, which would make Wirtz the joint most expensive transfer in Premier League history alongside Moises Caicedo, who opted to join Chelsea over the Reds from Brighton & Hove Albion in 2023.

If Leverkusen agree to what is thought to be Liverpool's second offer, it would smash their current transfer record - the £85m committed for Darwin Nunez to Benfica in 2022 - by £24m.

"There's no question that there's a lot of interest," Leverkusen's sporting director Simon Rolfes said at the top of the week.

Some things are true, some things are certainly not true in the last few weeks.

"And that's why we'll see, because that's an open topic with Florian that there's also concrete interest from Liverpool, that's clear, but at the moment, there's no further status."

The opening of the transfer window on Sunday, for a 10-day trading period, has been orchestrated to help those involved in the revamped and expanded Club World Cup in the United States, but Liverpool want to find an agreement sooner rather than later.

Wirtz, who scored 10 goals and created 12 assists, was recently named Bundesliga player of the year and his family informed Bayern of his intentions last Friday, with president Herbert Hainer revealing the day after: "Max Eberl (sporting director) informed me that Florian Wirtz is probably leaning towards Liverpool.

I can’t say how things will continue with Leverkusen."

It was reported last week in German media how inaccurate claims that an agreement with Bayern had been reached caused 'great irritation' for the Wirtz family as they mulled over the decision.

Leverkusen had been hopeful of keeping him at the BayArena for next season but having been informed of Wirtz and his family's career decision, a bid from the champions is in the lap of the Bundesliga side as they begin to contemplate life without their talisman.

It's thought the player's former club, FC Koln, will be due around 1.5% of any transfer fee and new boss Erik ten Hag, speaking at his unveiling on Monday, revealed his excitement at rebuilding a squad that has already lost vaunted coach Xabi Alonso and influential defender Jonathan Tah, who has joined Bayern on a free transfer.

Ten Hag said: "We have to build a new squad and a new team.

I’ll work with the players who are available on 1 September.”

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Speaking about Wirtz in his final press conference as Leverkusen boss, former Reds midfielder Alonso said: "Flo is one of the top players in the world.
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