Manchester City are not giving up in their pursuit of Florian Wirtz this summer.
The Bayer Leverkusen star and Bundesliga winner is also admired by Bayern Munich and Real Madrid.
FC Bayern were understood to be in pole position to sign Wirtz. The German champions had agreed on a transfer with the 22-year-old attacking midfielder.
However, it seems that the transfer poker is not yet an open-and-shut case.
Manchester City want Florian Wirtz to replace Kevin De Bruyne
Florian Wirtz dribbles the ball against Borussia Dortmund.
(Photo by Lars Baron/Getty Images)
Manchester City are now trying to hijack Bayern’s move for Wirtz.
The Sky Blues have come up with a counteroffer to Bayer Leverkusen. The Premier League giants are hoping that they can persuade the No.10 to withdraw his commitment to Munich.
Pep Guardiola is a big fan of Florian Wirtz and wants the German international to replace the outgoing Kevin De Bruyne at the Etihad.
The Belgian midfielder is currently due to depart City at the end of the 2024/25 season, with his current terms due to expire this summer.
Florian Wirtz stats Kevin De Bruyne stats
44 games (3,302 minutes) 37 games (2,227 minutes)
16 goals 6 goals
15 assists 8 assists
Wirtz has already held talks with Man City
I understand Wirtz was in England on Tuesday to take part in negotiations with Manchester City. The footballer travelled with his father, Hans-Joachim Wirtz, and mother, Karin Groß.
The English outfit has also made an offer to Leverkusen. This could come close to meeting Bayer’s €150m [£126.1m] price tag.
The Bundesliga side would prefer to offload the former FC Köln star to the Premier League as opposed to strengthening a direct rival.
FC Bayern now have a big rival in the poker for Wirtz’s signature.
How much are Bayern prepared to pay?
The Bavarian giants are thought to be preparing an initial bid in the region of €100 million [£84.6m] to submit this summer.
Bayern are prepared to wait a year to sign Florian Wirtz. However, the eventuality of the German staying put for another season seems somewhat unlikely – particularly with Manchester City also pushing hard for the transfer.
What did Hans-Joachim Wirtz have to say?
Hans-Joachim Wirtz had no comment for the press upon his return to Germany.
Florian’s father emerged from the airport alone, before getting into a car to pick up his family at a separate exit.