Liverpool star Florian Wirtz's 10-word remark in first conversation after transfer says it all

Liverpool star Florian Wirtz's 10-word remark in first conversation after transfer says it all

Florian Wirtz already made clear his ambition to reach the top of football upon signing for Bayer Leverkusen in 2020, as revealed by former club employee Tim Steidten

Florian Wirtz could make his Liverpool debut against Preston North End on Sunday (Image: Liverpool FC via Getty Images )

Florian Wirtz always intended on reaching the highest level of football after explaining his ambitions when signing for Bayer Leverkusen as a teenager. The 22-year-old - who joined Liverpool last month in a deal that could be worth a British-record fee of £116million - signed for the Bundesliga side in 2020 after spending 10 years in the academy of boyhood club Cologne.

Recruited to Leverkusen by former head of scouting, Tim Steidten, who is also the ex-technical director of West Ham, the 46-year-old worked alongside Leverkusen's managing director of sport, Simon Rolfes, to sign the then-teen.

It was during their first conversation, which Steidten revealed in an appearance on Sky Sports Germany, that he realised the depths of Wirtz's footballing ambitions. "Many people ask me whether he will be able to establish himself at Liverpool," he said.

"For me, that is beyond question. My answer is always clear: yes! I remember our first conversation with him in Simon Rolfes’ office very well – his parents were there too. Simon asked him, 'Where do you want to go, what do you want to achieve?' And Florian replied, 'I want to become the best player in the world.'"

In the five years Wirtz spent at Leverkusen, the Germany international established himself as one of the best players in the world, hence the mammoth fee paid for his services by the reigning Premier League champions.

Reporting for his first day of pre-season training on Tuesday, just days after the tragic death of Diogo Jota and his brother Andre Silva, Wirtz and his team-mates will be hoping to do Liverpool's number 20 justice this season by making it a triumphant campaign.

Tim Steidten was responsible for bringing Wirtz to Bayer Leverkusen in 2020 alongside Simon Rolfes (Image: PA )

Speaking after his unveiling as the Reds' record signing, the German opened up on his lofty hopes as he said: "I would like to win everything every year! In the end, we want to be successful. Last season they won the Premier League so my goal is for sure to win it again and also to go further in the Champions League. I’m really ambitious."

Wirtz said choosing Liverpool was the "next step" he needed to take in his career and added: "I'm really excited to have a new adventure in front of me. This was also a big point of my thoughts.

"I want to have something completely new, to go out of the Bundesliga and to join the Premier League. I will see how I can perform there. I hope I can do my best.

The Liverpool superstar said winning the Premier League and the Champions League are his goals to achieve at Anfield (Image: Liverpool FC via Getty Images )

"I just thought that it was the right point in my career to make the next step and of course I wanted to get to a club that is from the top three in the world. In my opinion, Liverpool is one of them. I just saw myself in the best hands in Liverpool.

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"I was really convinced by the people here, by the idea, and everything what the club offers me was really good." Wirtz is likely to feature in Liverpool's first pre-season match of the season on Sunday against Preston North End, which is set to be broadcast on ITV should the match go ahead in the wake of Jota and his brother's passings.

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