Florian Wirtz wins Germany's Footballer of the Year award - with Bayern Munich's Harry Kane missing out on place in top three

In the poll held by German outlet kicker, Wirtz secured 191 votes from 633 journalists, comfortably beating Olise, who received 81. Nick Woltemade of VfB Stuttgart came third with 71 votes, with Thomas Muller narrowly behind on 70. However, Kane, last season’s Bundesliga top scorer, failed to feature among the top four in the rankings.

The award win further cements Wirtz’s status as one of Europe’s brightest young talents. His big-money move to Liverpool has placed huge expectations on the 22-year-old, who is also being touted as Germany's next big thing after Toni Kroos, who won the same award last year.

Wirtz’s £100 million fee, potentially rising to £116m ($156m) with add-ons, is a British transfer record. His creativity and attacking output were key in catching the attention of journalists voting in the annual kicker poll.

The 22-year-old will look to justify the hype with a strong start at Liverpool in the Premier League. Kane will aim to use the snub as motivation as Bayern target domestic and European glory. Both players are expected to be central figures for their clubs and countries in the coming season.