Liverpool give Florian Wirtz a €200m Michael Olise warning
Liverpool have got a conundrum to solve over Florian Wirtz.
Signed in summer 2025 for a fee that could reach £116m the Germany international has yet to hit the heights at Anfield which he reached at Bayer Leverkusen.
The 23-year-old’s toils have now continued into his second Liverpool season with question marks beginning to be raised by fans over the consistency of his performances.
Former sporting director Richard Hughes - and ex-head coach Arne Slot - committed a lot of money towards signing Wirtz and he is going to need time in order to become a centrepiece of this attack under Slot’s successor Andoni Iraola.
Liverpool remain interested in Michael Olise
But patience is not going to last forever and there is a sense that sooner or later Wirtz is going to have to start producing goals and assists.
Otherwise the 2024/25 Premier League champions won’t hesitate to sign an upgrade - with Michael Olise being a name mentioned in a new report from BILD.
Bayern Munich sensation Olise has scored two incredible goals for France in recent UEFA Nations League matches and his value has skyrocketed since moving to Bavaria from Crystal Palace in summer 2024.
FC Hollywood would dearly love to renew his contract - which is currently due to expire in 2029 - but so far talks haven’t proven fruitful.
Olise will get a €200m release clause
The German record champions would like to move Olise into their category of top earners beside Harry Kane - on around €25m a year.
Now there is talk about the inclusion of a release clause - which if signed off - would be worth €200m according to the German sports paper.
“In Olise's case, if he extends his contract until 2032, a figure exceeding €200 million would not be unrealistic,” the report reads.
The report also makes mention of Liverpool as well as Real Madrid as potentially being interested in signing Olise even at that near world-record price.
Liverpool want Olise, Bayern want Wirtz
“Real Madrid and Liverpool still have Olise on their radar,” the report reads.
“Such a high transfer fee would provide Bayern Munich with security: in the event of an early departure, they could afford a high-quality replacement.”
And on that note it appears that Bayern may well have a swap deal in mind should they lose Olise to the Anfield side. Because they would love to sign Wirtz - a player they missed out on when he chose Merseyside ahead of the Allianz Arena in 2025.
“For comparison, Liverpool already paid €125 million to Leverkusen for Florian Wirtz (23) in the summer of 2025 – beating Bayern to the punch,” the report reads.
“Should Olise be sold, Wirtz, who continues to struggle at Liverpool, could once again become a target for Bayern.”
What happens from here remains to be seen. Wirtz is going to have to get motoring with goals and assists otherwise Liverpool may well be tempted to move on with Olise.
A fee of €200m for Olise is not excessive given his current form. The countdown is on for Wirtz and a deal for Olise could be in sight whether or not he signs a new deal.
