Florian Wirtz to Liverpool: When deal for Bayer Leverkusen star to join Arne Slot could be completed

Florian Wirtz could complete his Liverpool medical in the immediate aftermath of Germany's Nations League campaign, Reds expert David Lynch has claimed.

Despite the fact that the Reds won the Premier League without making any first-team additions, the club seem keen on significantly strengthening their team ahead of 2025-26.

Arne Slot's side have been strongly linked with Bayer Leverkusen attacker Florian Wirtz, with Liverpool reportedly deep in negotiations with the Bundesliga club for his signature.

Lynch argued that it would not be surprising to see the German playmaker complete a medical following the completion of Germany's last match, when he told Sports Mole: "It's something that can happen in international duty. Federations are usually very accommodating, [but] they don't want it to disrupt their preparation, so Liverpool have got to be very sensitive around that and make sure they're not getting in the way.

"But there's enough time in between training to get a medical done, to get your interviews done and all. It shouldn't be too big an obstacle, so I don't think that's anything that anybody's massively concerned about. Germany wouldn't stand in the way of getting a medical done, so it's not a big worry.

"Maybe they will have the medical after the game and everyone will accept that, but the ambition is to get this done in that first transfer window. There's obviously only less than a week left of that now, and they've got enough time to get it done - I'm sure Germany will allow them to do that."

Germany lost 2-0 against France in the third-place playoff of the Nations League on Sunday, but that will be their final international match until September.

Why is the deal not yet completed?

Liverpool have reportedly had two offers for Wirtz rejected by Leverkusen, and though pre-season is yet to start for the Reds, some supporters are frustrated that the deal has not been finalised.

It should be highlighted that Liverpool will smash their record outlay on a single player should they sign the German, and such a transfer would naturally take time.

Speaking to Sports Mole, Lynch reiterated the fact that Liverpool are advanced in negotiations, and that there is no need to fear a slight delay, saying: "I'm not getting any suggestion from the Liverpool side that there's any concern. This is seen as a standard negotiation for a big deal, that it will take a little bit of time, and nobody's projecting any worry over it at the moment.

"Of course, they've already done one deal this summer, albeit through a release clause, but they acted respectfully in the way that it was done. Liverpool ticked every box in terms of that. So there's absolutely no enmity between these two clubs in the negotiations.

"It's just a simple case of Bayer Leverkusen wanting to get as high a price as they possibly can and Liverpool wanting to pay as little as they can for a player they acknowledge is going to cost an awful lot of money. That negotiation is ongoing at the moment - they've had a bid rejected recently - and it's just about the makeup of the add-ons and how achievable they are, what amount of the deal is guaranteed in cash and what amount is in add-ons."

Darwin Nunez's transfer from Benfica in 2022 for a fee that could rise to £85m remains the club's record expenditure, and it is not surprising to learn that Liverpool are trying to save as much money as possible.

Why comparisons to Moises Caicedo are unfounded

The wait for confirmation of a deal being agreed between the two clubs has brought back unwanted memories of Liverpool's failed pursuit of Moises Caicedo in 2023.

Brighton & Hove Albion had accepted a bid of £111m from the Reds, but the midfielder ultimately chose to move to Chelsea instead, with the Blues spending £115m to secure his services.

While the figures touted in Wirtz's deal are reminiscent of the Caicedo saga, Lynch explained that the two situations are completely different, telling Sports Mole: "The biggest factor here is that the player only wants to join Liverpool - there's no concern about Liverpool being gazumped from elsewhere because he has made his mind up.

"The biggest difference to Caicedo, which I've seen the concerns and the comparisons to, is that in that situation it was very much Liverpool coming to the party late - they hadn't done enough work on that deal. They sensed an opportunity and went in there at the last minute, but by that point, the player had given his word to Chelsea and didn't want to go back on that.

"They were never in the driving seat for that, even though they had a bid accepted before Chelsea because they didn't have the player on board, whereas Wirtz is the complete opposite because they've got the player's sign off. They know what personal terms will look like as all that aspect of the deal is sorted. It's just about coming to an agreement now with Bayer Leverkusen."

It should also be highlighted that Liverpool were desperately looking to strengthen in midfield due to the poor performances in the squad in 2022-23, and they ill-advisedly attempted to hijack Chelsea's deal, whereas they have approach the Wirtz transfer more methodically.

Written by
Lewis Nolan