Man City pursuit of Wirtz 'ESCALATES' as 'FAKE NEWS' blasted

Tom Weber

Updated: 5 Mar 2025 09:26 CST
3 min read

Pep Guardiola, Florian Wirtz, Man City — © IMAGO

Manchester City have sought to 'escalate' the battle for the signature of Florian Wirtz, according to German media.

The Bayer Leverkusen star continues to make headlines at home and abroad. Despite Wirtz ostensibly being close to signing a contract extension with his club, transfer rumours persist.

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The 21-year-old is on the radar of pretty much every top club due to his consistently elite performances in the Bundesliga. Wirtz is not simply a magician with the ball at his feet, but he has also become a leader for Leverkusen and someone who is not afraid to get stuck in and put in the work.

The attacking midfielder has a price tag in excess of €150 million and Leverkusen are calm about his situation despite his suitors falling over themselves to court him.

Bayern Munich have launched an epic charm offensive and would even be prepared to go into debt to secure the signing of their 'dream' target in the summer. Elsewhere, Man City are said to view him as an ideal replacement for exit-bound Kevin de Bruyne.

Wirtz rumours blasted as 'fake news'

Earlier on Wednesday, German outlet BILD claimed that Man City had sought to 'escalate' the battle for Wirtz by hiring well-known intermediary Giovanni Branchini to get in touch with the player's family.

Wirtz is represented by his father Hans-Joachim and Branchini is alleged to have made contact with him in a bid to convince him of a transfer to the Etihad.

However, another German outlet, Fussballtransfers, has since asked Branchini for comment and the Italian emphatically dismissed BILD's assertions.

Branchini blasted the reporting as 'fake news' and made it clear that he is in 'no way' involved in City's supposed attempts to lure Wirtz to England, calling into question whether the Manchester giants are actually in talks with the player's camp.