Florian Wirtz has joined Liverpool from Bayer Leverkusen for a club-record fee in the summer transfer window.

Liverpool have officially completed the signing of Florian Wirtz.

The playmaker moves to Anfield from Bayer Leverkusen for a club-record £100 million, which could rise to £116 million. The Reds beat Bayern Munich and Manchester City to the signature of Wirtz, who is regarded as one of Europe’s top prospects. He has signed a five-year contract and will reunite with former team-mate Jeremie Frimpong, who joined the Reds from the German side earlier this summer,

The 22-year-old enjoyed five-and-a-half fine seasons at Leverkusen. He recorded a total of 57 goals and 64 assists in 197 games. The highlight was the 2023-24 season when he was part of a Die Werkself side that won its maiden Bundesliga title, as well as the DFB-Pokal.

What’s been said

But Wirtz was ready for the next chapter and opted for Premier League champions Liverpool. Leverkusen CEO Fernando Carro admitted that the club had had to ‘let him go’ to carry on his journey. Carro told the club’s website: "Florian Wirtz developed from a very promising talent into a world-class player here with us. We are very proud of the path he has taken at Bayer 04. Now we have to let him go.

“We will miss Florian but part of him will always be connected to Bayer 04. His sporting ability and his irrepressible commitment are an example and inspiration to us to show our full ambition to establish Bayer 04 at the top of German football and always strive to achieve the maximum success."

Managing director sport Simon Rolfes added: "Florian's departure is associated with lots of emotions for the whole club and also for me personally. He came to us as a 16-year-old and he built up close and warm relations with many people at the club over the years. Through his attitude, his passion and his unconditional desire to win he not only motivated and inspired his teammates on the pitch but also the staff in the immediate vicinity of the team and throughout the club. Florian never played for himself, he always put the success of the team first. On behalf of everybody, I'd like to say a sincere thank you. Florian Wirtz will always be part of Bayer 04.”

Wirtz’s ambitions

Liverpool’s aim with Wirtz will be to defend the Premier League title in the 2025-26 season. That is something Wirtz has on the agenda - as well as harbouring dreams of Champions League glory. He told the club’s website: "I was just happy for the players here to live it, the moment, and also for the people here.

"I think it was well-deserved because they played an unbelievable season. It was just crazy to see how many people came and how the atmosphere was. It was really good to see.

"I'm not coming [to] have fun here, I want also to achieve something and give the fans what they deserve. Of course I want to keep going at this performance. So yeah, that sure gives motivation to achieve more. I would like to win everything every year! First of all, we have to do our work, I have to make my work. In the end, we want to be successful.

"Last season they won the Premier League, so my goal is for sure to win it again and also to go further in the Champions League. I'm really ambitious."

Liverpool are set for a busy summer, with AFC Bournemouth left-back Milos Kerkez next in line to arrive for around £40 million. The Reds may sign a centre-back, with Crystal Palace’s Marc Guehi on the radar, while a striker is also on the wish list.