Liverpool have reportedly suffered a couple of setbacks in their pursuit of Bayer Leverkusen's Florian Wirtz, as their opening two offers for the 22-year-old have been rejected.
Arne Slot's Premier League champions have emerged as the frontrunners to capture the Germany international ahead of the 2025-26 season and were reported to have made a club-record bid last week.
Liverpool are prepared to make Wirtz their most expensive signing of all time, and the player himself is believed to be keen to move to Anfield either in the current window - which runs until June 10 - or the second transfer period, which opens on June 16.
However, there are still a couple more hurdles to clear before the former FC Koln starlet can link up with the Reds' squad, as Kicker reports that Leverkusen have turned down Liverpool's first two proposals.
The English champions' opening proposal was believed to be a fixed fee of £84.3m, potentially rising to £96.9m with add-ons, but it quickly became clear that they would need to go into the three figures.
Leverkusen 'reject' opening Liverpool bids for Wirtz
© Imago
Liverpool then came forward with a revised offer totalling £109.5m, made up of a £99.4m sum plus £10.1m in performance-related bonuses, but Leverkusen still want to garner at least £126.4m.
Nevertheless, there is still optimism on Liverpool's side that Wirtz will soon become a Reds player, and they are expected to hold a new round of discussions with the German giants later this week.
The 22-year-old continued to go from strength to strength last season with 16 goals and 15 assists from 45 matches across all competitions, having become a Bundesliga Invincible in the previous campaign.
Manchester City were rumoured to have been pursuing Wirtz as an ideal replacement for Kevin De Bruyne, but the Sky Blues withdrew their interest due to the cost of a deal.
Meanwhile, Bayern Munich also supposedly wanted to bring the playmaker to the Allianz Arena as they prepare to lose Thomas Muller, but they have been informed that the player's priority is Liverpool.
Which players could Liverpool include in Wirtz deal?
© Imago
While Liverpool are by no means struggling financially - as evidenced by their willingness to go above the £100m mark for Wirtz - the Reds can still drive the price down by means of a part-exchange deal.
Leverkusen are believed to have identified two Liverpool players who could move in the opposite direction, including Harvey Elliott, who would be a like-for-like replacement for his German counterpart.
The England Under-21 international is said to have rejected a move to a Premier League club, but it remains to be seen if he is open to testing himself in another country.
Defender Jarell Quansah has supposedly caught the eye of Leverkusen chiefs too, as the 2023-24 Bundesliga champions have now lost Jonathan Tah on a free transfer to Bayern.
Liverpool and Leverkusen have already negotiated the transfer of Jeremie Frimpong to Anfield, a deal that was confirmed on Friday as the Dutchman gave his first interview to the club's website.
Ben Knapton
