- EXCLUSIVE from Graeme Bailey
Manchester City and Liverpool are already planning for next season as both clubs hope to push for Premier League glory once again.
Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City won their fourth title in a row after his side beat David Moyes’ West Ham United 3-1 at the Etihad Stadium and will hope to push for more European glory.
As for Liverpool, the Reds are preparing for a season without Jurgen Klopp with Arne Slot joining the club from Feyenoord. A revolution could be expected at Anfield, with the Dutchman surely wanting to bring in his own players to help his side build for the new campaign.
It seems that both teams are already preparing to make their moves as HITC Football understands that both City and Liverpool were in Dublin watching the UEFA Europa League final between Bayer Leverkusen and Atalanta, with the Italian side winning 3-0.
City and Liverpool scout Leverkusen star
It is our understanding that the two Premier League sides were in Dublin to watch Leverkusen attacking midfielder Florian Wirtz, who has had an outstanding season for the Bundesliga side.
Xabi Alonso’s side have had an incredible campaign winning their first Bundesliga title and doing it in style pulling off an incredible unbeaten run. They take on FC Kaiserslautern in the DFB Pokal and could win an impressive league and cup double.
Wirtz has been a key player for the German side, netting 18 goals and providing 20 assists in 48 games in what has been an incredible season for the young attacking midfielder.
Alonso is such a big fan of Wirtz that he compared the German to Lionel Messi, he told GOAL: “There are good players and there are players who look good on the pitch. The player who looks good does things that are nice, but not necessarily efficient.
“Why is Messi so good? Because he knows how and when to play simple passes. Messi says: ‘You’re in a better position? Here, there you have the ball!’ It’s not always about making the most brilliant move, but the best and smartest. Florian can do that. That’s why he’s so good.”
After suffering a serious injury two seasons ago, Alonso has brought the best out of the 21-year-old and there is no surprise to see some of Europe’s top clubs are keen on him.
Despite City and Liverpool scouting the midfielder, HITC understands that Wirtz has given his word to Alonso that he will stay at Leverkusen for at least 12 more months.
However, both of the English sides are keeping abreast of the situation and are keen to see how he develops across the next year.
Wirtz could be the De Bruyne replacement
This campaign for Kevin De Bruyne has been a mixed bag. The Belgian midfielder has missed a big portion of the season through injury but when he has played for City, he has been superb.
Over the next 12 months, the question could turn to potential replacements for the Belgian midfielder, who has played just 25 games in all competitions this campaign.
Despite the 32-year-old missing a significant portion of the season, De Bruyne still provided 18 assists across all competitions so Wirtz would have big shoes to fill if he is the man to replace the Belgian.
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