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Ritabrata Banerjee

‘Can afford any transfer we want’ - Why Bayern Munich didn’t battle Liverpool for £116m Florian Wirtz transfer after seeing German playmaker struggle in England

Bayern Munich chief has claimed that the Bundesliga champions "can afford any transfer they want", while explaining why they did not compete with Liverpool for Florian Wirtz's transfer. The Reds beat Bayern and Manchester City in the race to sign Wirtz from Bayer Leverkusen this summer as they paid a whopping £116 million ($156m), a British transfer record at the time.

  • Wirtz's struggle at Anfield

    Wirtz has failed to recreate the stunning form he showed for Bayer Leverkusen in the last two seasons since moving to the Premier League. He has appeared in 10 matches across all competitions for Arne Slot's side and has only one assist to show for his efforts thus far. 

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  • Florian WirtzGetty Images

    Wirtz benched against Chelsea

    After failing to perform in a series of games, Slot finally dropped Wirtz from his starting lineup during their crunch Premier League clash against Chelsea. He was, though, introduced in the game at the start of the second half, as the German replaced Conor Bradley. 

  • 'We can afford any transfer we want'

    Now, Bayern Munich CEO Jan-Christian Dreesen has taken a sly dig at the English champions while explaining why they did not compete for Wirtz. Speaking to BILD, Dreesen said: "We can afford any transfer we want. We have an excellent capital ratio. FC Bayern is doing very well. But we want to be able to pay a player – without having to run to the bank. That's not FC Bayern's DNA. The bottom team in the English league, at €125m, has €60m more in media revenue than us. Liverpool has €200m, while FC Barcelona and Real Madrid each have €160m."

  • Chelsea v Liverpool - Premier LeagueGetty Images Sport

    Liverpool face mini-crisis

    After a perfect start to their season, where they won seven matches in a row across all competitions, the Reds have now lost three back-to-back games, against Crystal Palace and Chelsea in the Premier League and Galatasaray in the Champions League. After the international break, they will host Manchester United on October 19.