Florian Wirtz of Bayer Leverkusen and the Liverpool FC logo (Photo by Pau Barrena/Getty Images)
Christian Falk has given some insight into Florian Wirtz’s decision to snub Bayern Munich for Liverpool this summer.
Writing in his latest column for CF Bayern Insider, Falk explained that it wasn’t about the money, but more about his role in Arne Slot’s side.
Wirtz would have been up against Jamal Musiala at Bayern, and it’s perhaps not clear how he would have fit in to Vincent Kompany’s tactical set-up.
Liverpool did well to perhaps give the Germany international a clearer picture of how their team would be built around him.
This Falk update will delight Liverpool fans as it shows their immense pulling power, with the Reds able to get this done despite Bayern offering huge money to Wirtz.
Christian Falk on Florian Wirtz transfer decision
Florian Wirtz of Bayer Leverkusen in action
Florian Wirtz of Bayer Leverkusen in action (Photo by Lars Baron/Getty Images)
Providing his latest info on Wirtz’s decision, Falk wrote: “I think this is really, really hard for Bayern Munich. It’s disappointing to hear that it wasn’t even a question of money; it’s said that Wirtz will earn €20m-22m per annum at Liverpool. Bayern offered more – they would have paid about €24m – so, this is doubly hard for FC Bayern to accept.
“It doesn’t just come down to Vincent Kompany’s vision for the player, it’s also about Max Eberl’s involvement (or lack of). The preparation for the deal was built from the ground up by the old bosses, like Uli Hoeneß, who arranged the meetings with the player. Florian Wirtz flew into Munich for a secret meeting. Then, it was up to the manager and director of sports to make a good impression on the player. By this point, Liverpool head coach Arne Slot must have presented a much clearer vision.
“It shouldn’t be forgotten that Bayern Munich already have a key player in the central positions in Jamal Musiala – Liverpool don’t have this welcome headache. Still, you would have backed Bayern to come up with a clear plan on where Wirtz would fit in in Munich.
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“I think, if they had settled on a plan with Musiala, Bayern could have found a solution that would have suited all parties. Ultimately, the pair work well together with the national team, so why shouldn’t it also work at Bayern Munich?
“I think this was the main point that ensured talks did not go as well as hoped. The plan just wasn’t really clear. I think they had an idea about how they could use Florian Wirtz in different game states, but there was not one clear plan like Arne Slot had in terms of using the 22-year-old in central areas. All play will revolve around the German international at Liverpool; he will be the number 10. The vision at Liverpool is clear and coherent. For Munich, it was the opposite.”
Liverpool making a statement after title victory
Liverpool are clearly not messing about after winning the Premier League title in 2024/25.
It seems clear that the Merseyside giants are determined to keep on getting even stronger, with Wirtz looking to be on his way alongside some other big names.
Jeremie Frimpong has already been officially announced, and all signs point towards Milos Kerkez being next.
On top of that, Liverpool also did well to secure new contracts for star duo Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk, even if losing Trent Alexander-Arnold to Real Madrid will undoubtedly be a big blow.