Man City begin negotiations for potentially record-breaking transfer | OneFootball

Manchester City are considered to be "firmly in the running" to sign Bayer Leverkusen star Florian Wirtz, despite strong competition from Bayern Munich and interest from Real Madrid.

Wirtz has been on City's transfer radar for years, since he burst into the Leverkusen first team at 17 to replace Kai Havertz upon his 2020 move to Chelsea.

The attacking midfielder suffered an ACL tear in the early spring of 2022, which ruled him out for ten months until the following year. But there has been no lasting damage, with Wirtz central to Leverkusen's epic 2023/24 campaign, which yielded a first-ever Bundesliga title, DFB Pokal and run to the Europa League final. The latter was the only game they lost all season.

Wirtz has remained a transfer target for Europe's biggest and most ambitious clubs following another strong season in 2024/25. But City's chances looked to have been fading as speculation mounted that he was closing in on a move to domestic giants Bayern.

City face competition from Bayern Munich & Real Madrid / Ralf Ibing - firo sportphoto/GettyImages

But The Telegraph has reported that Wirtz's parents, who represent him rather than an outside agent, have made a "whistle-stop in Manchester", confirming they are still in the race. Hans Wirtz, the father, was spotted arriving at Maastricht airport off a flight from Blackpool, a quiet provincial airport an hour or so up the Lancashire coast from the far busier hub that is Manchester.

In Germany, SportBild writes that a "concrete offer" from Manchester City has landed at Leverkusen's door. Bayern have not yet tabled their own bid but are rumoured to be preparing a €100m (£84m) proposal. Leverkusen are asking as much as €150m (£127m).

The size of the City offer has not been disclosed in the reporting, but signing Wirtz could challenge their club record transfer, which currently stands at the £100m paid for Jack Grealish in 2021.

Wirtz is viewed as the ideal replacement for Kevin De Bruyne, who is leaving the club at the end of his contract after fresh terms were not offered. City have also been linked with the likes of Nottingham Forest vice-captain Morgan Gibbs-White and Barcelona's Dani Olmo as possible alternatives.

Pep Guardiola's side are additionally considering central midfielders too - including AC Milan 'number eight' Tijjani Reijnders.