Florian Wirtz in action for Bayer Leverkusen
Florian Wirtz in action for Bayer Leverkusen
Florian Wirtz's expected arrival at Liverpool is set to be completed next week when the summer transfer window reopens.
Manchester City's rivals agreed a £116m transfer fee with Bayer Leverkusen for the talented 22-year-old attacking midfielder which signals a huge statement of intent from the Merseyside club. Many have questioned how Liverpool have managed to splash so much money on a single player this summer having regularly insisted in the past that they did not have the money to compete financially with the Blues.
Ultimately this summer's splurge has come about thanks to their frugal approach to last summer's transfer window. Federico Chiesa was the only signing of note last summer for Arne Slot which makes it even more incredible that he managed to lead them to the Premier League title.
Now, they have effectively two summers of money remaining to spend big and that is what they are doing. But where does this leave City as we creep towards the new Premier League season?
Pep Guardiola now finds himself in an unfamiliar but perhaps favourable position of underdogs going into the 2025/26 campaign. Already the odds were stacked against City thanks to their involvement in the Club World Cup which, if they reach the final, shall seriously impact their recovery time ahead of the new Premier League season starting.
But not just that, Liverpool arguably have all the expectation on their shoulders to retain the Premier League title. Before making a signing of this magnitude, you could argue that Slot had the pressure off him as he had bought himself time by delivering a league title.
That theory does not stand when Liverpool are set to be the biggest spenders in the summer window. City have learned to live with that pressure and mostly flourished under it.
Now, City can hopefully flourish as the team under the radar who can look to spoil Liverpool's plans. While missing out on Wirtz will have been a disappointment, the arrival of Rayan Cherki could be a wise addition and there shall be an expectation that the Blues will be a lot more competitive in the title race than they were this season.
However, at least they can rest easy knowing that all of the outside pressure is on Liverpool to repeat their trick, than on City to restore their place at the top of the pile. That is perhaps a greater position for Guardiola's men to be in.
Here at The Manchester Evening News, we're dedicated to bringing you the best Manchester City coverage and analysis.
Make sure you don't miss out on the latest City news by joining our free WhatsApp group. You can get the club's breaking news and best analysis sent straight to your phone by clicking here to subscribe.
You can also subscribe to our free newsletter service. Click here to be sent all the day's biggest stories.
And, finally, if you'd rather listen to our expert analysis then make sure to check out our Talking City podcast. Our shows are available on all podcast platforms, including Spotify and Apple Podcasts, and you can also watch along on YouTube.