Wirtz seals massive Liverpool move from Leverkusen
Florian Wirtz has completed his anticipated move to Liverpool from Bayer Leverkusen, becoming the Reds' record signing in the process.
The midfielder has signed a long-term deal with the Reds, which is understood to be five years, joining for a reported club-record fee of £100 million ($208.5 million), plus a potential £16 million ($33.4 million) in add-ons.
Bayern Munich and Manchester City were also said to be in the running for his signature, but Wirtz opted to join the Premier League champion.
"I feel very happy and very proud. Finally, it's done and I was waiting for a long time – finally it's done and I am really happy," Wirtz said.
"I'm really excited to have a new adventure in front of me. This was also a big point of my thoughts: that I want to have something completely new, to go out of the Bundesliga and to join the Premier League.
"I will see how I can perform there. I hope I can do my best. I spoke also with some players who played there, and they told me that it's perfect for me, and every pitch is perfect; you can enjoy every game. I'm really looking forward to playing my first game."
Wirtz is Liverpool's second signing from Leverkusen in this window, after Jeremie Frimpong moved to Anfield.
The club is also reportedly close to bringing in Milos Kerkez from Bournemouth, with reports suggesting a fee had been agreed.
Wirtz could make his competitive Liverpool debut in the FA Community Shield against Crystal Palace on 11 August (AEST).
He made his professional debut for Leverkusen in May 2020, becoming the club's youngest debutant in the Bundesliga at 17 years and 15 days.
He was a pivotal figure for the Werkself under Xabi Alonso, making 119 appearances under the Spaniard, while scoring 38 goals and providing 43 assists.
He helped the club to its first Bundesliga title in 2023-2024, as well as the DFB-Pokal, in what was an unbeaten domestic season.
He followed that up with 30 goal involvements last term. His 16 goals were second only to Patrik Schick (27) among the team.
Wirtz also recorded the most assists (14), while only Alex Grimaldo (107) created more chances than his 91 among Leverkusen players in all competitions last season.
In the past two Bundesliga campaigns, Wirtz completed the most dribbles among all players in the competition (161), having attempted 446.
