‘Squeezing’—Liverpool Learn Third Florian Wirtz Bid Outcome, Next Move ‘Expected’ | OneFootball

The negotiations between Liverpool and Bayer Leverkusen regarding a deal for Florian Wirtz are expected to drag on after the Premier League champions reportedly had a third bid rebuffed.

Talks over the past two weeks have been billed as a “poker game” by the German press. Leverkusen do not seem to be bluffing when it comes to their €150 million (£126.4 million, $171.1 million) valuation of the 22-year-old playmaker.

After coming in with a bid of €100 million (£84 million, $113.7 million) at the end of May, Liverpool have steadily upped their stake to €134 million (£113 million, $152.8 million). The deal was said to be in the “home stretch” but the latest offer has now been rejected once again, The Times state.

Liverpool were prepared to hand Leverkusen a guaranteed £100 million with a further £13 million in add-ons but the Bundesliga outfit have stood firm. The Times claim that the Reds are already lining up a fourth bid, which BILD expects to be in the region of €140 million (£118 million, $159.7 million)—marginally short of Leverkusen’s asking price.

Both outlets describe the deal as a question of when, rather than if.

An agreement between the club and player has already reportedly been struck. Wirtz is expected to sign a five-year contract with a salary which could put him in the same bracket as Liverpool’s perennial top scorer Mohamed Salah.

Wirtz, for his part, has remained coy on the matter. The Germany international has offered little more than a nod of recognition when faced with questions regarding his future. Although, he did produce a distracted display in his nation’s 2–0 defeat to France in the Sunday’s Nations League third-place playoff.

The figures surrounding Wirtz’s transfer have long surpassed the club-record fee for a Liverpool player. Yet, if the Reds do stretch as high as £118 million, the incoming German would become the most expensive acquisition in British football history, surpassing Chelsea’s £115 million ($155.6 million) deal for Moisés Caicedo in 2023.