Florian Wirtz has taken off from Cologne Bonn Airport to fly to Liverpool ahead of his British record £116million deal to join the Reds as the second blockbuster signing of their transfer window.
The Anfield club are close to pulling off the transfer coup of the summer after beating Bayern Munich and Manchester City to German superstar.
Wirtz is set to command a fee worth a staggering £116m, with a £100m base fee guaranteed.
The combined fee will see the star become the most expensive British transfer in history, taking the honour from a midfielder once eyed by Liverpool – Chelsea’s Moises Caicedo.
As per German outlets, Wirtz arrived at the airport in Cologne in a people carrier as he prepared to jet to England for his upcoming medical.
According to Sky Sports Germany, the medical is set to take place in part on Thursday afternoon, with further details confirmed on Friday.
Data tracking the Bayer Leverkusen star’s plane shows that he is on a flight bound for Manchester Airport, and is set to arrive shortly before 5pm.
Reports on Wednesday suggested that Wirtz’s parents, Hans and Karin, are set for a bumper payday after having played a role in negotiating his five-year contract.
Wirtz’s parents are reportedly going to receive a hefty commission totalling around £8.6m (€10m), after taking the reins in talks rather than negotiating via an agency.
When in England, Wirtz will link up with Liverpool’s first transfer of the summer, his former Bayer Leverkusen team-mate Jeremie Frimpong.
Wirtz and Frimpong – who completed his own £29.5m transfer to Liverpool earlier this month – shared a photo of themselves on a boat soaking up the sun off the coast of Montenegro earlier this week.
They are set to be linking up on the pitch soon after enjoying plenty of success together in Germany.
The duo won a domestic double under Xabi Alonso in 2023-24, before adding the German Super Cup to their collection last season.
Alonso has now moved on to manage Real Madrid, while Frimpong is settling into life at Liverpool.
Wirtz will be by his side shortly, barring any unforeseen setbacks, and has his parents to thank for securing his switch to Merseyside.
They were made to work for their commission as well, with Leverkusen initially playing hardball when Liverpool first made their approach for Wirtz.
Liverpool had bids of around £100m and £110m knocked back, but eventually reached an agreement with the Bundesliga side.
The Premier League champions are also eyeing a deal to sign Bournemouth’s Milos Kerkez.
The defender’s father – and agent – Sebastijan has claimed that a move is a ‘done deal’, despite the Cherries driving a hard bargain at the negotiating table.
Bournemouth are believed to be holding out for £45m, but Sebastijan was adamant that save for a few minor details, his son will head to Anfield.
‘It’s only Liverpool for us and we’re not going anywhere else and we won’t talk to other clubs,’ sadi Sebastijan. ‘Everything is done between us (personal terms) we just need to sort out some details but it’s basically a done deal.’
