🚨 Wirtz set to cost much less, reports: Bayer and LFC agree on fee
The transfer poker for Florian Wirtz has been going on for weeks, but now the clubs are said to have clarified the last details. According to current consistent media reports from England and Germany, only the medical check is still standing in the way of the deal.
However, the well-known transfer experts in the scene have now raised a much bigger puzzle with the details. The 'kicker' and 'Sky' reporter Florian Plettenberg report consistently that Liverpool will pay a fixed transfer fee of 130-135 million euros for Wirtz, and the sum could increase to up to 150 million euros through various bonuses.
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In contrast, there are the reports from England's transfer guru David Ornstein from 'The Athletic' and the also well-informed Andy Hunter from 'The Guardian'. The two Englishmen estimate the transfer fee at "only" 100 million pounds and 16 million pounds in bonuses, which is equivalent to approximately 117.5 million euros and almost 19 million euros in bonuses. With a possible total sum of a maximum of 136.5 million euros, the Englishmen thus locate the transfer fee significantly lower than their German colleagues. If not all bonuses are achieved, the transfer could ultimately not even go through as the most expensive Bundesliga sale in history.
Ousmane Dembélé currently holds this status, who switched from Dortmund to Barcelona in 2017 for 135 million euros.
So, is Wirtz significantly cheaper than thought? If you believe the reports from England, Liverpool FC has managed to negotiate down the transfer fee originally demanded by Bayer Leverkusen after all.
This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇩🇪 here.
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New York Times
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The signing of Florian Wirtz comprises a new club-record deal for Liverpool. Wirtz will join from Bayer Leverkusen on a five-year contract. In exchange, Liverpool have agreed to pay the German club £100million ($135.9m) in guaranteed fees, with a potential £16m due in add-ons. The deal, even without those add-ons, eclipses Liverpool's previous transfer record by a distance. That record is generally seen as having been in place since January 2018, when they parted with £75m to buy Virgil van Dijk from Southampton. Advertisement In fact, the Van Dijk fee may already have been topped prior to this agreement. Darwin Nunez was signed from Benfica in June 2022 for an initial £64m that could rise to £85m. To the end of last December, according to the Portuguese side's financial disclosures, Liverpool had paid a further €10m (around £8.5m) of a potential €25m in add-ons, so any more conditions being met in the last six months could mean Nunez's transfer fee went past Van Dijk's. 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