The breakdown in the add-ons as part of Liverpool’s record-breaking move for Florian Wirtz have come to light, along with a transfer fee lower than first reported.
Liverpool struck gold when convincing Florian Wirtz to snub Bayern Munich in favour of moving to Anfield. Arne Slot is understood to have played a pivotal role in swaying the German superstar who quickly agreed personal terms on a five-year contract.
Fabrizio Romano reported on Tuesday that Liverpool had verbally agreed a package worth €150m / £127m with Bayer Leverkusen. His reporting was quickly backed up by Sky Germany.
However, the vast bulk of other sources and outlets in the media weren’t as quick to commit.
The radio silence has now been broken with an avalanche of updates on Friday morning.
The likes of David Ornstein (The Athletic), Paul Joyce (The Times) and Lewis Steele (Daily Mail) have all confirmed Liverpool have a club-to-club agreement in place.
Romano remains adamant the fee agreed upon is €150m / £127m and claimed the figures Liverpool will brief the wider media on would be LOWER than the true figure.
From an optics point of view, Liverpool would want the announced fee to be lower, while Leverkusen would obviously like the figures put forward in the media to be higher.
That has now transpired, with Ornstein, Joyce and Steele all stating the actual number is €136m / £116m.
Of that £116m figure, the journalists all state £100m is guaranteed and the remaining £16m is made up through add-ons.
Whether Romano is correct and the real figure is €150m or whether the transfer guru has endured a rare misstep and the true number is €136m remains to be seen.
But what is clear is even at the lower number (€136m / £116m), Wirtz will become the most expensive player in Premier League history if all add-ons are triggered.
The current record holder is Moises Caicedo (£115m from Brighton to Chelsea, add-ons included).
Liverpool secure ideal add-ons
According to Ben Jacobs, the add-ons Liverpool have negotiated are perfect from their perspective.
Some add-ons clubs agree to are almost guaranteed, like a player making x number of appearances. Others are near-impossible, like the star winning the Ballon d’Or.
In Wirtz’s case, Jacobs claimed the overwhelming majority of the add-ons relate to Liverpool winning major trophies and Wirtz being in the team when that happens.
“Vast majority of £16m (add-ons) is linked to Liverpool winning major trophies and Wirtz being in the team while achieving it,” wrote Jacobs.
If Liverpool are lifting major trophies like the Premier League or Champions League over the coming years, no one will have any qualms whatsoever about sending a few extra millions to Leverkusen.
On the subject of when Wirtz’s transfer to Liverpool will become official, the summer window is currently in a brief hiatus and will re-open on Monday.
Furthermore, Wirtz is currently on holiday and is not expected to undergo a medical until he returns. Sky Germany state Wirtz isn’t scheduled to return from his holiday until Wednesday (June 18).
As such, official confirmation of Liverpool breaking both theirs and the Premier League’s transfer record will have to wait until next week.
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Florian Wirtz’s full goals and assists breakdown
Florian Wirtz 2019/20 Games 9 Goals 1 Assists 0 2020/21 Games 38 Goals 8 Assists 8 2021/22 Games 31 Goals 10 Assists 14 2022/23 Games 25 Goals 4 Assists 8 2023/24 Games 49 Goals 18 Assists 20 2024/25 Games 45 Goals 16 Assists 15
Florian Wirtz stats by season for Bayer Leverkusen