Manchester City are in the midst of a rebuild. New signings like Omar Marmoush, Nico Gonzalez and Abdukodir Khusanov have started their journey with the club, with Marmoush already making his mark.
However, the size of the task should become bigger in the upcoming season, as the likes of Kevin De Bruyne and İlkay Gündoğan are going to leave the club.
As the English champions fight for a top-four finish, some new names have started getting associated with them for the upcoming season. Florian Wirtz, the German midfielder of Bayer Leverkusen, is one such player.
Florian Wirtz Should Be Able To Replace Kevin De Bruyne
It is going to be an extremely difficult task, given the fantastic achievements the Belgian playmaker has had for the Cityzens during the last decade.
However, one has to keep in mind that De Bruyne had joined Manchester City from Bundesliga club VfL Wolfsburg and history might repeat itself with Wirtz.
Wirtz started his career as a left-winger, but has developed into a complete attacking midfielder now, who can play as the No. 10. The German, who will turn 22 this year, has won the Bundesliga title with Leverkusen.
Moreover, he has a very creditable 56 goals and 58 assists for the German champions in his six seasons with them.
That is an astounding record, which makes one feel that he should be the ideal replacement for De Bruyne in Manchester City’s midfield.
Omar Marmoush can play on the left side of that midfield, with Savinho on the right and Erling Haaland as the striker.
Bernardo Silva can partner Wirtz in the central midfield in Manchester City’s customary 3-2-4-1 formation.
Wirtz has shown that he can thrive alongside another creative player in the midfield, as he did with Jamal Musiala for the German national team.
Finalizing the team-combination might seem to be a bit premature at the moment, but it could easily happen next season.
City have almost always been ambitious as well as judicious in their signings in recent times and they might not hesitate in going for Wirtz.
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Manchester City Will Have to Battle It Out for Wirtz
The German giants Bayern Munich have already made their move towards getting Wirtz’s services from the next season.
Bayern are contemplating to make a very lucrative offer of 250 million Euros, including wages, for the Bayer Leverkusen player reportedly.
Thomas Muller is leaving the club at the end of the season and the Bavarians are looking for a replacement.
Wirtz might very well prefer to stay in Germany. Should he decide to move abroad, the almost irresistible temptation of joining Real Madrid might be there, as the Spanish heavyweights are also reportedly keen on signing him as a replacement for Luke Modric.
Hence, Manchester City’s job is not going to easy, as far as signing Wirtz is concerned. The temptation to play under the tutelage of Pep Guardiola might persuade Wirtz to come to England after all.
The gloss of Premier League football should also be there. Will he be the one to join the Cityzens and replace the seemingly irreplaceable De Bruyne next season?
Your guess is as good as ours at the moment.
Main Photo
Credit: IMAGO / HMB-Media
Recording Date: 20.04.2025