Wirtz to undergo medical checks with Reds on Friday: Report
dpa
Berlin
Bayer Leverkusen playmaker Florian Wirtz is to undergo medical checks with Liverpool on Friday ahead of completing his transfer to the Premier League champions, the online news portal The Athletic reported on Monday.
Liverpool have reportedly agreed a fee of 136.3 million euros ($157.9 million) with 117.5 million euros due upfront and a further 18.8 million euros in potential add-ons to sign the Germany international.
It represents a club-record purchase for Liverpool and sale for Leverkusen, and would be a British transfer record if the add-ons are achieved.
Leverkusen had reportedly set a 150 millioneuros fee for the 22-year-old talent, which Liverpool didn't plan to meet.
Wirtz has a contract with Leverkusen until June 2027. He had also been targeted by German champions Bayern Munich, but the Bavarians were informed that he preferred a move to Liverpool.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Al Jazeera
12 hours ago
- Al Jazeera
Liverpool sign Wirtz shattering club record transfer fee
Liverpool delivered a huge statement of intent after winning the Premier League title by signing Germany star Florian Wirtz from Bayer Leverkusen. The transfer fee could climb to 116 million pounds ($156m), which would make the 22-year-old Wirtz the most expensive player in the history of British football. 'I feel very happy and very proud,' Wirtz told the official Liverpool website on Friday. 'Finally, it's done, and I was waiting for a long time. 'I'm really excited to have a new adventure in front of me. This was also a big point of my thoughts: That I want to have something completely new, to go out of the Bundesliga and to join the Premier League. 'I will see how I can perform there. I hope I can do my best. I spoke also with some players who played there, and they told me that it's perfect for me and every pitch is perfect, you can enjoy every game. I'm really looking forward to playing my first game.' Liverpool, determined to keep moving forward despite securing a record-tying 20th English top-flight title, splashed out a club record to bring in not only one of the best players from Germany, but one of the top youngsters in the world. Wirtz has been a key first-team player for Leverkusen since he was 17. He was the outstanding attacking player in the team that won the Bundesliga and German Cup in 2023-24 without losing a game, and is a regular in Germany's national team. It is why Liverpool was ready to pay a guaranteed 100 million pounds ($134.4m), plus 16 million pounds ($21.5m) in potential add-ons. Wirtz had two years left on his contract, giving Leverkusen leverage in negotiations. The Premier League record for an initial fee was set when Chelsea signed Enzo Fernandez from Benfica for 106.7 million pounds ($131.4m at the time) in 2023, before the London club agreed to pay up to 115 million pounds ($146m at the time) for midfielder Moises Caicedo from Brighton later that year. Liverpool manager Arne Slot arrived last summer and signed just one outfield player — forward Federico Chiesa — for the 2024-25 season. Chiesa barely played and the Reds won the league by 10 points, after which Slot and some of his players — including Virgil van Dijk — spoke about there being big plans for this transfer window. Having already signed right-wing back Jeremie Frimpong from Leverkusen for a reported 35 to 40 million euros ($39.7 million to $45.4 million), Liverpool has returned to the German club to take Wirtz, who rejected an opportunity to join Bayern Munich — a Bundesliga rival which has long pursued him. One obstacle to that move was the size of the fee Leverkusen wanted. Another was concern over how Wirtz might fit into the same lineup as Jamal Musiala, Germany's other standout young attacking midfielder. Losing Wirtz leaves Leverkusen and its new coach, Erik ten Hag with an even bigger rebuild following the departure of Xabi Alonso for Real Madrid. Just after his 17th birthday, Wirtz became the youngest player in Leverkusen's history when he made his debut against Werder Bremen in May 2020, in an empty stadium at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. A month later, he was the youngest player to score in Bundesliga history, though that record has since been toppled. Wirtz's versatile attacking midfield play was a vital ingredient in Alonso transforming Leverkusen into a team that could win the Bundesliga and German Cup without losing a game. He and Alonso stayed for another sometimes-disappointing season, which ended with second place to Bayern in the league and a loss to Bayern in the Champions League round of 16. Wirtz showed he can deal with adversity when a cruciate ligament tear in his knee ruled him out for almost all of 2022, including Alonso's first games as coach, before he returned to power Leverkusen to its league and cup double in 2023-24. Wirtz has become a vital player for the German national team with 29 caps. He played all five of its matches at Euro 2024 on home soil. He has also had to contend with hostility from fans of his boyhood club Cologne, which he left for nearby Leverkusen at 16. Liverpool and Bayern were reportedly interested then, too. Cologne claimed that deal broke an agreement between the clubs not to pursue each other's youth players. Leverkusen argued Wirtz was so talented that he counted as a first-team player despite his age. Cologne and Leverkusen are barely 10 kilometres (six miles) apart, so going to Liverpool will be the first time that Wirtz has moved away from his roots. His parents, Hans Wirtz and Karin Gross, have played a big role in his career — they were also his agents until last year — and he is close to his older sister Juliane, a professional player for Werder Bremen in the women's Bundesliga. Wirtz's decision to turn down Bayern and the Bundesliga for Liverpool has raised some eyebrows in Germany. 'I wouldn't have thought Florian would make this switch so early,' former Germany great Lothar Matthaus told broadcaster n-tv last month. 'But he wants to get out of his comfort zone.' Wirtz seems likely to slot in as the No. 10 at Liverpool, a more creative solution in that role compared with the hard-running Dominik Szoboszlai. Whether Slot also now pushes for a new striker as an upgrade to current options Diogo Jota and Darwin Nunez remains to be seen. Szoboszlai could drop back into one of the two deeper midfield positions, competing with Ryan Gravenberch, Alexis Mac Allister and Curtis Jones.
Qatar Tribune
a day ago
- Qatar Tribune
Czech star Kvitova to retire after US Open
PAMedia/DPA London Two-time Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova has announced she intends to retire after the US Open later this year. The 35-year-old Czech returned to the tour in February following the birth of son Petr last summer and will play at Wimbledon for a final time after being given a wild card. Kvitova was a surprise winner of a maiden Grand Slam title at the All England Club in 2011, defeating Maria Sharapova in the final. The powerful left-hander's game proved perfect for grass courts and she added a second Wimbledon crown in 2014, while she also made the Australian Open final in 2019 and reached a career high of second in the rankings. She achieved both feats despite a shocking stabbing by an intruder at her home in late 2016 in which she suffered damage to tendons and nerves in her left hand, threatening her career. Writing on social media, Kvitova said: 'Growing up in my hometown of Fulnek and hitting the first tennis balls with my father on the local courts, I never imagined becoming a professional tennis player, being able to travel the world, and playing in the most beautiful stadiums around the world. 'I've been privileged to reach incredible heights over the past 19 years since becoming a professional tennis player. From winning my two Wimbledon Championships, bringing home six Billie Jean King Cup trophies for the Czech Republic, reaching the world #2 ranking and so much more. 'I have accomplished more than I could have ever imagined and I am so grateful to everything that tennis has given me all these years. It has taught me countless lessons, not only on the court or in the gym, but also in life. 'I would never be whom I am today without this beautiful sport, and everything it has given me both on and off the court. 'As with all phases in life, there comes a day that it is time for a new chapter, and that time for me has come now. I therefore wanted to share with you that 2025 is my last season on tour as a professional. 'I am excited and very much looking forward to soak in the beauty of playing The Championships, Wimbledon one more time, a place that holds the most cherished memories in my career for me. 'And while I am not entirely sure yet what my hardcourt swing in the US will look like, I am intending to finish my active playing career at the US Open in New York later this summer. 'While no such decision is ever easy to make, for me this is a happy moment! I will leave the sport with the biggest smile on my face - the same smile you've seen from me on and off court throughout my whole career.' Kvitova has found wins very hard to come by since returning to the match court in Texas following more than a year away. It took her five tournaments to register her first victory, which came against Irina-Camelia Begu on clay in Rome, but that so far remains her only win.
Qatar Tribune
a day ago
- Qatar Tribune
Real held by Inzaghi's Al Hilal in CWC opener
PA Media/dpa London Real Madrid boss Xabi Alonso and Al Hilal counterpart Simone Inzaghi had to make do with a share of the spoils as they launched the latest phase of their careers with a 1-1 Club World Cup draw. On a night when new Real head coach Alonso handed debuts to summer signings Trent Alexander-Arnold and Dean Huijsen, it was another former Premier League player who helped to ensure it finished level in Group H. Ruben Neves converted a 41st-minute penalty to cancel out Gonzalo Garcia's opener at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami, but his efforts would have counted for little had goalkeeper Bono not saved Federico Valverde's stoppage-time spot-kick. The Saudi side were first to threaten with Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, Neves and Marcos Leonardo all going close inside the opening 10 minutes. Renan Lodi thought he had given Inzaghi's men a 19th-minute lead only for an offside flag to quickly halt his celebrations. Central defender Hassan Altambakti headed a 27th-minute Neves corner wide as Al Hilal continued to enjoy the better of a game, and Alonso was vociferous with his players as they headed for the sideline for a water break. Whatever he said appeared to have an immediate impact with Rodrygo sending a left-foot shot over before sliding in a low cross at the end of a fluent counter-attack which was dispatched by Garcia with 11 minutes of the half remaining. A poor first-touch prevented Garcia from making the most of Jude Bellingham's 38th-minute through-ball, and Al Hilal were level with four minutes of the half remaining when, after Raul Asencio had pulled back Leonardo, former Wolves midfielder Neves calmly sent Courtois the wrong way from the spot. Skipper Salem Al-Dawsari might have put his side ahead as the whistle approached, but his curling attempt after he had exchanged passes with Milinkovic-Savic was deflected just wide. Asencio did not return for the second half and replacement Arda Guler rattled the crossbar from Vinicius' cross within seconds of his arrival before Garcia's header was improbably clawed away by Bono. Alexander-Arnold was starting to make his presence felt down the right and as Bellingham picked up the baton, the Spaniards began to dominate. However, they could not find a way past their opponents' rearguard. And even when they looked to have been handed an escape when they were awarded a stoppage-time penalty for Yasser Al-Qahtani's swinging arm on Fran Garcia, Valverde's spot-kick was saved superbly by Bono.
