Sport
Wirtz signing is a landmark moment for Liverpool
The race to sign Florian Wirtz has been intense, but Liverpool are set to cross the line first. Many of Europe’s biggest, and richest, clubs wanted the German superstar. Bayern Munich, Manchester City and Real Madrid were particularly interested, yet a summer switch to the Premier League proved most enticing to the 22-year-old.
Liverpool will pay a club-record transfer fee for the privilege of signing Wirtz. Reports claim Bayer Leverkusen will receive £116m for their prize asset which would make the German international the most expensive signing in Premier League history, surpassing the previous record held by Chelsea and Moises Caicedo (£115m).
Wirtz’s arrival will be a landmark moment for Liverpool. While the Anfield club have earned a reputation for finding good value in the transfer market, the £116m deal will change perceptions. Liverpool are no longer penny pinchers and are showing they can spend just as freely as some of their rivals.
Of course, Liverpool have spent big in the past to land their top targets. The Reds made Virgil van Dijk the most expensive defender in football history when they paid £75m to sign the Dutch centre back from Southampton. Similarly, Alisson Becker was crowned the world’s most expensive goalkeeper when he joined from Roma for £67m.
This time, though, Liverpool have flexed their financial muscle in a different way. They have blown their rivals out of the water in the pursuit of Wirtz. Real Madrid wanted the German, but couldn’t find the money. Bayern Munich were in the race, but couldn’t match the wages on offer from the Premier League winners.
Manchester City might have been the most viable destination for Wirtz considering their need for a new creative midfielder. There was a Kevin De Bruyne-shaped hole in Pep Guardiola’s team and Wirtz, while a slightly different sort of player to the Belgian, would have been an excellent long-term replacement.
Ultimately, though, City decided against spending so much on a single player and instead spread their summer investment across several targets, signing Rayan Cherki, Tijani Reijnders and Rayan Ait-Nouri for less than it would have cost to land Wirtz. This in itself is a role reversal in the transfer market habits of City and Liverpool.
It remains to be seen how Wirtz will fit into Arne Slot’s system. The 22-year-old is a different sort of attacking midfielder to the ones already at Anfield. This is likely why Liverpool have targeted the German, to give them a different dimension as a team, but Slot will have to reshuffle things to make room for Wirtz.
Last season, Slot essentially kept the same system and lineup that worked for Jurgen Klopp. The Dutch coach was smart enough not to change too much too quickly. While he remoulded Ryan Gravenberch and Alexis Mac Allister into the central midfielders Liverpool needed, the team that won the Premier League title was fundamentally still Klopp’s.
Now, though, Slot might be starting the process of shaping Liverpool in his own image. The record signing of Wirtz could kick-start that process with the German an excellent dribbler and technical in the number 10 position. Slot will surely give him the freedom he needs to drift and find space in the final third of the pitch where he does his best work.
As Premier League champions, Liverpool are further entrenching their standing in the English game by signing Wirtz. The best teams tend to sign the best players and Liverpool are certainly doing that by spending £116m to land one of the brightest talents of the current generation. In doing so, though, their reputation might never be the same again.
