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Bayer Leverkusen attacking midfielder Florian Wirtz and manager Xabi Alonso (Image: Photo by INA FASSBENDER/AFP via Getty Images)

If anybody knows Florian Wirtz best as a footballer, it would be Xabi Alonso.

After winning the Champions League and FA Cup at Liverpool, the Spaniard would go on to craft an equally impressive managerial career in Germany.

There he has managed Wirtz in 118 matches at Bayer Leverkusen.



The pair have been unstoppable as manager and player, but now their partnership looks set to come to an end.

Alonso is all but certain to join Real Madrid, but for Wirtz, he has been linked with a whole host of clubs over the past 24 hours.

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Bayern Munich and Manchester City have both been linked, but it was reported by The Athletic on Wednesday evening that Liverpool have made contact with Wirtz's representatives to express an interest in signing him if he leaves Leverkusen and is keen on moving to England.

The report goes on to claim that Liverpool’s admiration is long-standing, but it is unclear whether Wirtz intends to depart Leverkusen or Germany this summer.

But when it comes to Alonso, he has already given a glowing endorsement of Wirtz.

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"There are good players and there are players who look good on the pitch," he said back in January 2023.

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