Florian Wirtz’s transfer refusal to FC Bayern is still a matter of concern for the record champions, especially because the move failed last summer due to „nuances“ – as father and advisor Hans-Joachim Wirtz put it. What role did the jersey number play? And how much did the sporting perspective influence the decision?
According to Wirtz’s father, the offers were practically on a par financially. The decisive factor was the sporting persuasion – Liverpool coach Arne Slot in particular had „personally convinced“ his son. The Dutchman presented Wirtz with a clear concept, characterized by ball possession, pressing and a central role in attacking midfield – a role that Wirtz expressly wanted.
The point that remained open: the shirt number
Max Eberl has now confirmed to Sport BILD how detailed the talks with the attacking star have already been. One detail in particular stands out: the discussion about the shirt number.
„Shirt numbers are not an unimportant issue for players,“ said Eberl – and it was precisely here that there was a gap between desire and reality. Wirtz is said to have preferred 10, but Munich had decided early on to give this number to Jamal Musiala on a long-term basis. „We were also very transparent about that,“ emphasized Eberl.
At the time, it had not yet been finally clarified whether Leroy Sané would extend his contract. Although Sané wore the 10, even a departure would not have cleared the way – Musiala was firmly planned internally. Popular alternative numbers such as 7 or 17 had also been allocated or reserved.
Wirtz would therefore have had to settle for a different number.
After the transfer to Liverpool, there was speculation that Wirtz had also wanted the 10 there. The 22-year-old denied this unusually clearly via social media: „Who says I wanted the 10? I respect other players. Don’t believe everything that’s written,“ he wrote, adding a clown emoji.
In the end, he took the 7 – a number that had become vacant following the transfer of Luis Díaz.
More decisive than any shirt number: the tactical role
While the question of numbers is rarely completely irrelevant for players, it was not the decisive factor here according to Bayern. The question of what role Wirtz could have played in Munich was probably much more serious.
As Arsène Wenger recently put it on beIN SPORTS: „When Wirtz had the choice of going to Bayern Munich or Liverpool, he said to Liverpool: ‚I’ll come to you if I can play on the ten. I don’t want to play on the wing‘.“
In Munich, however, the ten would have been permanently occupied by Jamal Musiala. The alternative: Wirtz on the wing – a position he can play, but does not see as a long-term ideal.
In sporting terms, things have not been going well for Wirtz at Liverpool so far. The DFB star is struggling to build on his high goal and assist figures from his Leverkusen days. The reigning Premier League champions are also in crisis: eight defeats from the last eleven competitive matches have put coach Arne Slot under pressure.