Jurgen Klopp fires warning to Florian Wirtz over 'insane' £116m move to Liverpool... as ex-Reds boss gives his verdict on British record transfer

Daily Mail​

21 hours ago

Jurgen Klopp has weighed in on Florian Wirtz 's 'insane' £116million move to Liverpool from Bayer Leverkusen.
The midfielder finally joined the Reds for a British record transfer fee earlier this month after a lengthy pursuit - which saw multiple bids rejected by Leverkusen - was drawn out for several weeks.
Wirtz, 22, signed a five-year deal which will run through the summer of 2030, and he is expected to be a cornerstone in Arne Slot 's side for years to come.
His first chance to impress in red may come just two weeks from now, with Liverpool set to face Preston North End in a pre-season friendly on July 13.
After their run of friendlies, the Merseyside club will face Crystal Palace in the FA Community Shield final, before embarking on their Premier League title defence on the opening day of the 2025-26 season against Bournemouth at Anfield.
But Klopp has cautioned Wirtz that if he doesn't start strongly, it will take only 'two or three games' for the pressure of his hefty transfer fee to start weighing on him.
'There's no question about it, it's an insane sum, and one that a player at Liverpool is aware of if things don't go well for two or three games,' the German veteran told Welt.
'We all agree that we're talking about a great player here. I know I once said that I'm out if we pay 100 million euros for a player. But the world is changing. That's just the way the market is.
'He's an outstanding player who can give any club something great. Whether he'll make the reigning English champions even better remains to be seen.'
Klopp's comments are a touch more measured than when he broke his silence on Wirtz's transfer last week.
He said then: 'This is going to be absolutely fantastic, I'm sure of it.
'It's very hard to strengthen a team when you're champions. But Liverpool have managed it.