From Spain: United prepared to spend astronomical fee to sign 21-yo prodigy – report

Manchester United are among the clubs keen on signing Bayer Leverkusen superstar Florian Wirtz, as per reports.

Bruno Fernandes remains the answer to United’s many problems. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer signed the Portuguese from Sporting CP in 2020 and built his side around the attacking midfielder.

Erik ten Hag also heavily relied on Fernandes’ versatility and creativity and even handed him the captain’s armband to spearhead his project. Ruben Amorim has only just arrived in Manchester and he seems to be clutching onto his fellow countryman to steady the ship at Old Trafford.

The 30-year-old started as a wide playmaker under the United head coach but lately, he has been used as a box-to-box midfielder. However, this switch has impacted the Portugal international’s creativity, underlining the need for a new playmaker at the club.

According to Fichajes, United are interested in signing Wirtz from Leverkusen.

At just 21 years old, the German midfielder has established himself as Leverkusen’s most important player and is widely regarded as one of the best-attacking midfielders in Europe. Wirtz has 15 goals and 13 assists to his name in all competitions this season.

The Germany international is tied to Leverkusen until 2027 but it is understood that the Bundesliga outfit are aware that it is not going to be easy to retain his services for too long, especially with top clubs willing to spend big for his services.

The Spanish outlet surprisingly claim that United are among the clubs prepared to spend nearly €150 million to lure the exceptional talent.

Barcelona, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, Manchester City, and Paris Saint-Germain allegedly also have the same stance, and “bidding for his signing is expected to be intense.”

A player like Wirtz could prove to be a game-changer for United. He could share the responsibility of creating chances with Fernandes from the get-go and eventually replace the fan-favourite midfielder.

Having said that, we are very skeptical that the Mancunians would be able to come anywhere close to meeting Leverkusen’s huge demands due to their financial fair play concerns.

Ineos are aggressively adopting bizarre cost-cutting measures so they are unlikely to spend such a figure on a single player.

Further, the sought-after prodigy is very unlikely to pick United’s unstable project when Europe’s biggest clubs are queuing up for his signature.