By all accounts, Liverpool are closing in on a move to bring Florian Wirtz to Anfield from Bayer Leverkusen this summer.
Liverpool are currently working on deals for Wirtz, Jeremie Frimpong and Milos Kerkez, two of which are currently playing at Bayer Leverkusen.
Former Liverpool star Xabi Alonso seems to have paved the way for Frimpong and Wirtz to make the switch to Anfield via his own decision to take the vacant managerial post at Real Madrid.
Liverpool might pay a slightly lower price for Wirtz than some expect in the coming weeks, assuming that Richard Hughes is able to complete a deal.
And it’s undoubtedly been an excellent start to the transfer window on Merseyside — a club who are determined to back Arne Slot.
Jeremie Frimpong says Florian Wirtz was his ‘first friend’ at Bayer Leverkusen
That being said, Frimpong did make some comments about Wirtz back in 2023 that should excite Liverpool fans.
The pair became teammates in 2021 when Frimpong made the switch to Germany from Celtic.
Photo by Jan Fromme - firo sportphoto/Getty Images
Photo by Jan Fromme – firo sportphoto/Getty Images
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And when reflecting on that move, Frimpong claimed that Wirtz was his first friend at the club, as well as complimenting his on-the-pitch contributions, too.
Speaking almost two years ago, Frimpong said: “On a day-to-day basis, he’s exactly how you see him on the pitch.
“He is impressive. He plays like he’s been playing for 10 years. He’s intelligent. He’s also a great person.
“He was the first one who took care of me when I arrived at the club: he was my first friend. Flo asked me about Celtic, invited me to his house, we would go out for dinner.
“He did things to make me feel at home.”
So in addition to an excellent player, Liverpool are clearly recruiting a good character as well.
Who do Liverpool need to sign after Florian Wirtz?
Assuming Liverpool are able to sign all of Frimpong, Kerkez and Wirtz in the coming weeks, most of their summer spending should be completed.
However, it’s common knowledge that Liverpool also want a new striker to spearhead Slot’s side next summer.
Darwin Nunez is likely to leave Anfield and the addition of a new number nine could be equally as important to the potential deals listed above.
First and foremost, Liverpool would love to sign Alexander Isak from Newcastle United.
However, Newcastle are determined to keep Isak and any deal would be extremely expensive should it become feasible that Swede could leave.
And perhaps Liverpool should target a move for Victor Osimhen at Napoli instead, a striker who has just spent the season on loan at Galatasaray.