Florian Wirtz, one of Germany’s brightest football talents, has officially joined Liverpool from Bayer Leverkusen in a deal worth up to €150 million, shattering the Bundesliga’s transfer record.
The 22-year-old attacking midfielder signed with the Premier League giants after completing his medical, with the transfer including significant bonus payments.
The fee eclipses the €135 million FC Barcelona paid Borussia Dortmund for Ousmane Dembélé in 2018, marking a new high point in German football’s transfer market.
Wirtz, who will reportedly earn between €20–22 million per year at Anfield, arrives after a historic season with Leverkusen, where he helped secure a domestic double — the club’s first-ever Bundesliga title and a DFB-Pokal triumph. In 140 appearances for Leverkusen, Wirtz scored 35 goals and provided 47 assists.
“Flo is a very special player,” said former Leverkusen manager Xabi Alonso. “The number 10 is tailor-made for him.”
Wirtz’s journey began in the Cologne suburb of Brauweiler, where he honed his ball control with his older sister Juliane — also a professional footballer — often playing indoors due to the lack of a television at home. “If I went to get a plate, I had a ball at my feet,” he once said.
His rise was momentarily halted by an ACL injury in 2022, which sidelined him from the Qatar World Cup. But under Alonso’s guidance, he returned stronger, ending the 2023–24 season with 18 goals and 20 assists in all competitions — more goal involvements than Jude Bellingham and equal to Phil Foden.
Wirtz’s first goal for Germany — a record-setting strike against France just seven seconds into the match — confirmed his growing legend. Alongside Jamal Musiala and Ilkay Gündogan, he’s considered one of the “three wizards” of German football by national team boss Julian Nagelsmann.
Now set to wear red at Anfield, Wirtz’s journey continues in England — with the iconic number 10 shirt and the hopes of the Kop behind him.
