The Florian Wirtz transfer saga has been abandoned by Manchester City.
Pep Guardiola’s primary objective during the summer transfer window was to acquire the Bayer Leverkusen player, as the German was perceived as the ideal replacement for Kevin De Bruyne in his departure.
De Bruyne will depart Manchester City this summer after a decade of service. To replace him, an exceptional talent must be recruited.
Guardiola had identified the star; however, it was reported on Monday that Man City has withdrawn from the Wirtz saga due to the player’s exorbitant cost.
Fabrizio Romano has now provided an update on the situation, and the transfer expert has disclosed an additional reason why the Manchester club withdrew.
Florian Wirtz was encouraged by Manchester City to expedite his decision-making process regarding his future.
When the transfer fee and salary are considered, it was anticipated that a deal for Wirtz would cost Man City in the vicinity of €300m (£252m). This transaction would be the most lucrative in the club’s history.
Although the financial aspect was a concern, Romano has also disclosed that the Manchester club was also concerned about the timetable, as they desired the German star to make a decision more promptly.
“Manchester City have elected to suspend the Florian Wirtz transfer saga at this time.” For what reason? On his YouTube channel, Romano stated, “They internally at Man City believe that the player will be too expensive in terms of transfer fee, salary, and commission. Therefore, this deal is too expensive.”
Additionally, Romano disclosed that Man City desired Florian Wirtz to expedite his decision-making process. Liverpool, for instance, is amenable to accommodating the player’s schedule, while Manchester City is eager to expedite the process.
City would have had to be aware of their budget before making any other decisions, as they intend to sign at least four or five players this summer. £252m is a substantial figure to spend on a single player.
Man City are also interested in Nottingham Forest’s Morgan Gibbs-White, and Tijjani Reijnders of AC Milan is a potential candidate for the number eight position in Guardiola’s team.
The Manchester club believes it was prudent to forgo Wirtz and refrain from breaking their transfer fee record, as both are anticipated to incur substantial expenses.
Manchester City’s most costly acquisitions
Wirtz would have easily surpassed the current record transfer fee for a Manchester City player, which is held by Jack Grealish. Grealish was acquired from Aston Villa in 2021 as part of a £100 million transaction.
The Manchester club has invested a significant amount of money in their squad over the years; however, City have never been particularly fond of paying exorbitant transfer fees, which is why Wirtz was a concern.
Guardiola has endured a challenging few days, and the disappointment of missing out on Wirtz will only serve to exacerbate the agony of his loss in the FA Cup final on Saturday..
This summer is a critical one for Manchester City and the Spanish coach, as the Premier League titans must strategically augment their squad in order to recover for the upcoming season.
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