Stefan Borson reveals the ‘reality’ of Florian Wirtz joining Liverpool ahead of Man City
Liverpool have received a boost in their bid to sign Bayer Leverkusen star Florian Wirtz ahead of the summer transfer window.
Manchester City have given up on signing Wirtz as he is set to join another club, with Bayern Munich also in the race to sign the Germany international.
The 22-year-old was believed to be a top target for Pep Guardiola’s side this summer as they look to replace the departing Kevin De Bruyne.
Football Insider revealed on 24 May Liverpool are closing in on a deal for Wirtz, with Bayer Leverkusen believed to be looking for a fee in the region of £125million.
However, former Man City financial adviser Stefan Borson exclusively told Football Insider he doesn’t believe the Merseysiders would be prepared to pay more than £100million for his signature.
Wirtz has registered 16 goals and 15 assists in 45 appearances for Bayer Leverkusen this season.
The midfielder is under contract with the Bundesliga side until June 2027.
Florian Wirtz told Man City he wants to join rival club
Borson revealed Wirtz has likely told Man City he wants to join Bayern Munich or Liverpool this summer after they pulled out of the race.
He told Football Insider: “We spoke a couple of times about how difficult it would be for anybody to do this deal and not just City.
“But I think it’s unlikely that the real reason for City pulling out is financial.
“I think City almost certainly would be able to cope with the financial burden of the deal better than anybody else, and therefore you have to assume that the reality is that he’s just told them that he’d rather go somewhere else.
“Then the question will be back to where we were when we discussed this in previous weeks is to whether people can find a landing on what the right price is and what the right fee is, and it certainly doesn’t look that clear at the moment that Bayern Munich can do the deal.
“I still am very sceptical as to whether Liverpool would be prepared to pay in excess of £100million. Maybe they would do £100million.
“They did offer that for players in the past at that sort of level, so maybe they do £100million. But I suspect they wouldn’t go much higher.
“It’s really just going to be a case of what Leverkusen would accept and where the player is prepared to go. But my gut feel is that he’s told City that he’d prefer to go to Bayern Munich or Liverpool.
“Certainly, I think he would prefer to go to Bayern Munich and City have just said ‘Well, we’re not going to commit €300million (£252million) over five years if you’re not even keen to come, forget it’. It’s just the nature of buying the very best players in the world.
“They are super expensive and, if they’re not interested in coming in, you can’t afford to take the risk of forcing a signing of that kind of scale.”
| Appearances | 45 |
| Goals | 16 |
| Assists | 15 |
Anthony Gordon to Liverpool deal reignited
Wirtz is not the only big-money star on Liverpool’s radar this summer, as they have also set their sights on a potential deal for Anthony Gordon.
Football Insider revealed on 22 May Liverpool have reignited their interest in Gordon and could pursue a deal worth up to £100million.
The 24-year-old was heavily linked with a move to Anfield last summer, but he remained at St James’ Park.
The winger has registered nine goals and seven assists in 41 appearances this season.
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