Liverpool Signs Most Expensive Player

Liverpool has agreed to pay Bayer Leverkusen an initial £100m for Germany attacking midfielder Florian Wirtz, potentially rising to £116m with add-ons. This deal makes Wirtz, 22, Liverpool’s record signing and the most expensive German footballer ever. The move also marks the biggest sale by a Bundesliga club.

The signing is significant for Liverpool, which already boasts some of the world’s most expensive players, including Alisson, the world’s second-most expensive goalkeeper, and Virgil van Dijk, the world’s second-most expensive center-back.

Wirtz’s initial fee means he moves for exactly half the world record, which remains the £200m PSG paid Barcelona for Neymar in 2017. In the UK, the deal is notable, with Chelsea’s £107m signing of Enzo Fernandez in 2023 remaining the British record for an initial fee.