Transfer Talk: Man City to battle Bayern Munich for Florian Wirtz's signature
The winter transfer window won’t reopen in Europe for a while yet, but there are plenty of moves in the works and gossip swirling around. Transfer Talk brings you all the latest buzz on rumours, comings, goings and, of course, done deals!
TOP STORY: Man City and Bayern Munich vie to sign Florian Wirtz
Manchester City have concrete interest in Bayer Leverkusen attacking midfielder Florian Wirtz and could rival Bayern Munich for his, Florian Plettenberg reports.
Wirtz is Bayern’s “top target” for the summer of 2025, per the report, with the German club ready to spend big on securing the transfer.
However, Man City’s pursuit could be boosted by Bayer Leverkusen’s preference to sell to a foreign club rather than one of their Bundesliga rivals.
Should the 21-year-old decide to leave, Bayer want to make him their all-time record transfer out, surpassing Kai Havertz‘s €80 million ($87m) transfer to Chelsea in 2020.
While Real Madrid have also been linked with Wirtz, Plettenberg reports that Man City have made the strongest efforts of any foreign club to sign the German international.
PAPER GOSSIP
– Erling Haaland remains the dream transfer for Barcelona president Joan Laporta, but a move to the Spanish club is unlikely, according to Patrick Berger. Berger says Real Madrid have a better chance of signing Haaland than Barcelona, due to the financial framework of any future deal. Talks are said to be ongoing between the Real Madrid and Haaland. The 24-year-old is under contract at City until 2027, who are currently attempting to extend his deal.
– Leroy Sané is not interested in a move to Newcastle United despite the club’s interest, Christian Falk says. The Bayern Munich winger’s contract is expiring in June 2025, with talks over a new deal stagnating of late, which has prompted interest from Newcastle and other Premier League clubs. Manchester United have also been heavily linked with the 28-year-old in recent weeks, although according to Falk, their pursuit of Sane is less concrete.
– Paris Saint-Germain are working on a contract extension for wing-back Achraf Hakimi, RMC Sport claims. Talks are already underway between PSG and Hakimi, who joined the club in 2021 from Inter Milan. Since then, he has played 128 times for the Ligue 1 giants, scoring 15 goals. Hakimi’s current PSG contract is set to expire in June 2026.
– RB Leipzig defender Castello Lukeba‘s release clause will decrease to €65 million ($70.7m) in the summer of 2026, Philipp Hinze has revealed. Lukeba is said to be happy in Leipzig, after enjoying a strong start to the new domestic season. His release clause next summer is set at €90 million ($97.8m), meaning interested clubs can pay €25 million ($27.2m) less if they wait until 2026 to sign the talented centre-back. The 21-year-old, who joined the Bundesliga side from Lyon in 2023, is on the radar of several top European clubs. However, Leipzig resolve that Lukeba will not depart in the January transfer window.
– Napoli have come to terms with the possibility of losing winger Khvicha Kvaratskhelia next summer, as per Tuttomercato. Despite being in talks over a new contract for a year, the Georgian superstar is no closer to penning an extension with Napoli. With just under three years left on his current deal, next summer will be the Serie A club’s last chance to deal him for big money. While the two parties may eventually reach an agreement over a contract extension, they remain very far apart in some key areas of the deal.
