Wirtz chooses Man City over Liverpool as ten Bayer Leverkusen stars set to follow Xabi Alonso
Assuming Girona donât do an absolute madness in La Liga, Bayer Leverkusen look set to be the surprise title winners in Europe this season, and with that spotlight comes interest in their players, coaches and staff.
Inevitably, much of that interest will come from the Premier League, and weâve looked at all the Leverkusen lads who could be set for the English top flight this summer, predicting where theyâll end up. We start with the main manâŠ
Xabi Alonso â Liverpool
Despite Xabi Alonso saying, and then repeating, that he would not be drawn on speculation over his future â understandable given his current team is on course for an historic treble â thereâs been predictable posturing from supposed in-the-know journalists, with ânewsâ (and weâre as guilty as anyone for reporting it as such) based upon little more than their feelings on the matter.
Letâs assume he does leave Bayer Leverkusen, for Liverpool, not because we have any inkling whether thatâs more or less likely than him staying put or choosing Bayern Munich (there are at least five reasons why that would be the smart choice), but because it would greatly increase the chances of some of his players moving to Anfield, making this flight of fancy article ever so slightly more substantial.
Simon Rolfes â Liverpool
Jorg Schmadtke has now left his interim post as sporting director, having very successfully rebuilt Liverpoolâs midfield it seems, and former transfer wizard Michael Edwards â to whom a sizeable chunk of the success under Jurgen Klopp can be attributed â has reportedly rejected an offer to return to Anfield.
Itâs claimed Edwards may be âmade an offer he canât refuseâ but failing that itâs thought Rolfes is high on a wishlist which also includes Frederic Massara, the former Roma and AC Milan director, and Florent Ghisolfi, the Nice sporting director.
Itâs thought Liverpool want a new director in place by the end of March, with that individual to make the final decision on a new manager. No prizes for guessing who Rolfesâ top choice would be.
Victor Boniface â Chelsea
How Chelsea are going to spend ÂŁ100m+ on Victor Osimhen in the summer when they canât even afford to play in the Europa Conference League obviously isnât a factor for gossip column writers, for whom the romance of âfollowing his idol Didier Drogbaâ trumps all logic, but weâre more grounded and exceedingly curmudgeonly here at Football365, and canât see it happening without them selling not just every academy graduate but every current member of their youth system. Six-year-olds can be pure profit too, right?
Can you tie your own bootlaces? Congratulations, youâre a makeweight for Victor Osimhen.
Fellow Victor and compatriot, Boniface, is two years younger than Osimhen, has scored seven more goals than him this season (16:9) and would be less than half the price.
Piero Hincapie â Liverpool
Liverpool were in touch with his agent both in the summer and winter windows â Â according to said agent, so pinches of salt please â but journalists with no particular skin in the game have cited the Redsâ interest in Hincapie as they search far and wide for Virgil van Dijkâs long-term successor at left centre-back.
At 22 heâs a player already performing at a high level, with a much higher ceiling, which certainly fits with the current recruitment model at Anfield.
Edmond Tapsoba â Chelsea
Manchester United have been more heavily linked, probably more because of the Manchester United transfer link obsession rather than greater interest, but there have been at least as many rumours of them going after Jean-Clair Todibo, a move less likely to see them bent over a barrel in typical United style given Sir Jim Ratcliffe owns Nice, the club Todibo currently plays for.
Chelsea want a centre-back, despite spending a cool ÂŁ200m on new ones in the last couple of seasons, because Thiago Silva looks finished, Trevoh Chalobahâs a pure profit pariah, Wesley Fofanaâs eternally crocked, and Axel Disasi channelling John Terry in one game of football apparently wasnât enough to convince Mauricio Pochettino that his defensive problems are sorted. Tapsoba is on his âlistâ and reports suggest Leverkusen will listen to offers of around ÂŁ40m for the 25-year-old.
Chelse are keen on Victor Boniface and Edmond Tapsoba.
Florian Wirtz â Manchester City
Liverpool are very keen as well, but reports suggest Pep Guardiolaâs set his his sights on the 20-year-old, possibly as a Kevin De Bruyne replacement, more likely simply as a very good footballer who will be brilliant in this version of Manchester City or one of the next two or three versions the manager develops them into.
Lucas Paqueta also remains on the City radar, and signing one likely rules out the other as each of them would cost around ÂŁ100m.
Wirtz does appear to be wedded to Alonso though, with reports suggesting the only way heâll remain at Leverkusen is with the current boss still in situ. So if Alonso goes to Liverpool, maybe Wirtz will too?
Exequial Palacios â Manchester United
With Casemiro in a downward spiral that features Christian Eriksen somewhere near its base, it would be something of a red flag for Sir Jim Ratcliffe (and here are five more) to make Kobbie Mainoo wholly responsible for the Manchester United midfield, excellent though heâs been.
Palacios is a fighter, not dissimilar to compatriot Lisandro Martinez in that sense, operating in central midfield, predominantly with defensive duties in mind, though heâs also got five goals for Leverkusen this season. United could snag him for around ÂŁ35m.
Jonathan Tah â Liverpool
âInterested in a move to the Premier Leagueâ according to Bild journalist Christian Falk, who also reckons Tah is on the Liverpool âlistâ and would be a snip given his release clause of just ÂŁ15m.
Huge Joel Matip vibes here as a cheap, experienced right-sided centre-back moving from the Bundesliga to Anfield.
Jeremie Frimpong â Arsenal
Liverpool and Manchester United were both also said to be keen in Frimpong, whose ÂŁ35m release clause is only valid this summer, but Conor Bradleyâs displays have presumably reduced Liverpoolâs need for a right-back to zerio, while United apparently have a problem with Frimpong being 5ft 6in, which is a laugh given Lisandro Martinez, but hey-ho.
That leaves Arsenal, whose fans continue to bang the drum for Ben White, while the rest of us have been convinced for a while that they would benefit hugely from an upgrade in that position.
Odilon Kossonou â Manchester United
Now an AFCON winner and a key cog for Xabi Alonso, who is reportedly convinced Kossonou has what it takes to go right to the very top of European football.
At 23 heâs presumably got his best years to come and fits the new youth transfer policy under Sir Jim Ratcliffe at United.
Patrik Schick â West Ham
Heavily linked with multiple Premier League clubs in his 2021/22 heyday when he banged in 24 goals for Leverkusen in the Bundesliga, but significant injury woes resulting in a general form dip since make him a prime candidate to become the 427th striker to join West Ham and fail to score goals for them.
Good