Bayern Munich handed major boost to Florian Wirtz signing hopes as Manchester City appear in future plans

Manchester City may not be the priority move for Florian Wirtz’s family at this stage of the player’s young career, according to new reports from Germany.

The standout attacking midfielder currently operating in Bundesliga football at present is widely regarded as being the Etihad club’s number one choice to replace Kevin De Bruyne this summer, in what will no doubt be a difficult deal to complete.

Not only would Bayer Leverkusen prefer an extended stay for their prized possession into next season, but they would also eye a transfer fee in excess of €150 million in order to sell this summer, with Bayern Munich and Real Madrid also interested alongside City.

Such a transfer fee would make Wirtz by far and away Manchester City’s new record signing by overtaking Jack Grealish and his £100 million move from Aston Villa in 2021, however the club know they cannot cut corners when it comes to replacing arguably their greatest-ever player.

But it now seems as though Manchester City have further hurdles to overcome away from the challenge of other clubs and attempted financial barriers to a deal put in place by Bayer Leverkusen, with the family of Florian Wirtz having their own ideas for the future.

According to the information of Sky Germany’s Florian Plettenberg, there have been several meetings and discussions between Bayern Munich and the family of the in-demand Bayer Leverkusen midfielder.

It is revealed that the Allianz Arena club are ready to make a ‘record-breaking signing’ of the player this summer, with still no contract extension agreed with Leverkusen despite the club remaining confident of keeping him at least until the summer of 2026.

Once again, Manchester City are labelled as being Bayern Munich’s ‘main competitor’ for the playmaker, although it is stressed that the Wirtz family are leaning towards a move to Vincent Kompany’s side before eventually moving abroad later down the line in his top-level career.

Names away from Wirtz as potential alternatives for Manchester City to explore this summer are few and far between, although some reports have speculated whether recruitment bosses could eye options closer to home.

Nottingham Forest’s Morgan Gibbs-White has been confirmed as a name that the four-in-a-row Premier League champions would be willing to consider, although it has been suggested that a £100 million price tag could be demanded by those at the City Ground.

It also remains to be seen whether a lack of viable options could lead to internal promotions within the existing first-team squad, with the likes of Phil Foden and James McAtee expected to step up their own games and amount of opportunities respectively next season.