Perhaps the most courted and ‘available’ wonderkid in Europe, Florian Wirtz is putting together an impressive season as part of Bayer Leverkusen’s early challenge for the Bundesliga Meisterschale.
Wirtz has gone from strength to strength since recovering from an anterior cruciate ligament injury sustained two seasons ago, the 20-year-old has 6 goals and 9 assists in 15 appearances for Leverkusen this season. Already he has 12 Germany caps to his name too.
Unsurprisingly, Wirtz has caught the attention of almost every top side in Europe. Liverpool, Chelsea and Manchester United are all watching him in England, while Bayern Munich are looking to poach one of their country’s top talents too. In Spain, Barcelona are said to be monitoring him too, although a move seems entirely out of the question, especially given his price tag.
As per Caught Offside, Wirtz will be allowed to leave the club for €120m. This fee would almost certainly limit his options to the Premier League, although perhaps Bayern could extend themselves if they felt him absolutely necessary.
This fee may seem somewhat excessive for a young midfielder who has made 119 senior appearances in club football, but as has been with Jude Bellingham, that kind of fee can end up looking like a good deal for the right player. Xabi Alonso is no doubt getting the best out of Wirtz that he can currently, and other clubs will have to have trust in their coaches to do the same.