JUST IN: Liverpool Agree Club Record Deal To Sign Florian Wirtz From Bayer Leverkusen—-The fee is comprised of a €117.5m (£100m) upfront fee with a further €18.8m (£16m) in add-ons, with Wirtz expected to sign a five-year deal at Anfield.

It represents a club record fee for Liverpool and a potential British record transfer, should the add-ons be activated.

Liverpool had not intended to meet Leverkusen’s reported asking price of €150m for Wirtz, whose contract at the German club runs through to 2027.

The discussions — led by Liverpool sporting director Richard Hughes and Leverkusen managing director of sport Simon Rolfes — had been mainly focused on the structure and specifically payment terms, plus the nature of any add-ons.

Wirtz was also targeted by Bayern Munich this summer, but the Bundesliga champions were informed in May that the playmaker favoured a move to Liverpool. He visited the north west of England to look for a property to live in, should his move to England proceed.

The German midfielder recorded 16 goals and 15 assists in 45 matches last season as Leverkusen finished second in the Bundesliga and reached the Champions League round of 16, where they were defeated by Bayern. In the previous campaign, Wirtz played an instrumental role in securing his side’s maiden German top-flight title with an unbeaten domestic season, alongside reaching the Europa League final.

He scored 18 goals and assisted 20 in 49 matches, earning the Bundesliga player of the season accolade.

Communication between Liverpool and Leverkusen had been opened early in the summer transfer window as the English club met the €35million (£29.6m; $39.3m) release clause for Jeremie Frimpong. The signing of the Dutch wing-back, on a five-year contract, was announced on May 30 following the departure of Trent Alexander-Arnold to Real Madrid ahead of the Club World Cup.