Man City have hit gold on £111m-rated star who is worth more than Wirtz

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola faces one of the most important summer transfer windows since he arrived at the club nine years ago.

So often the dominant club in England, as evidenced by their six Premier League titles since 2017, the 2024/25 campaign has been one of disarray.

Indeed, their only chance of silverware rests with the FA Cup. Guardiola has won this tournament twice since 2016 and will be out to make up for the defeat to Manchester United last season.

Kevin De Bruyne will depart City in the summer, and the club will need to find a replacement when the transfer window opens in a few weeks.

Nottingham Forest star Morgan Gibbs-White has been targeted as a possible arrival, with the Daily Mail even claiming that the Etihad side are currently the frontrunners for his signature.

His club have placed a staggering £100m valuation on the former Wolves starlet. Might this deter City from making a potential move?

They have also been linked with a move for Bayer Leverkusen youngster Florian Wirtz ahead of next season, and perhaps he would be the better option out of the two players.

Latest on Man City’s interest in Florian Wirtz

According to Football Insider, Wirtz remains the number one target to replace De Bruyne this summer.

Bayern Munich and Real Madrid are also keen, but it appears as though Guardiola will do everything to ensure the German international signs for City when the window opens.

It would be a sensational move, that’s for certain. Since making his senior debut for the club during the 2019/20 campaign, Wirtz has already amassed over 190 first-team appearances for the club, scoring 56 goals and grabbing 63 assists in the process.

Remarkably, he is still only 21, and if he did join City, the German could be the focal point of a new era under Guardiola.

When compared to his positional peers in Europe’s top five leagues, Wirtz ranks highly across a range of attacking metrics. Indeed, the attacking midfielder ranks in the top 7% for shot-creating actions, progressive passes, and successful take-ons per 90 over the previous 365 days.

These statistics certainly prove that he is among one of the finest in his position on the continent, and given the fact that he hasn’t even hit his peak yet, Guardiola must do everything in his power to bring the player to England.

Florian Wirtz’s market valuation at Bayer Leverkusen

Whatever happens, Leverkusen stand to make an enormous profit on the player who came through their youth system.

According to Football Transfers, Wirtz is currently valued at €116.4m (£100m) at the time of writing. There is no doubt the club will be seeking a transfer fee higher than that should he express his desire to leave Germany.

If he continues on his current upwards trajectory, Wirtz’s value will only soar. City do have a couple of players in their first-team squad who have a higher market valuation, however.

One such player has done so much for the club since he arrived in the summer of 2019 – Rodri.

How much Man City paid to sign Rodri

Having just won their second league title in a row, Guardiola was keen to keep the momentum going as the club headed into the 2019/20 campaign.

This saw them splash out a then club-record transfer fee of £62.8m to sign Rodri from Atlético Madrid.

“Rodri has proven himself as a hugely talented, young midfielder,” said director of football Txiki Begiristain.

“He has as all the attributes we are looking for.”

Six years later, the Spanish midfielder has proven why he might just be one of City’s finest signings under Guardiola.

Rodri has been a major success at Manchester City

Across his first three seasons in England, the midfielder missed just 12 Premier League matches for City, winning two league titles in the process.

The 2022/23 season was arguably his finest since making the move from Spain to Manchester. City finally claimed their first Champions League trophy, which was won alongside the domestic title and the FA Cup to complete a stunning treble.

He made a total of 56 appearances, registering 11 goal contributions for City throughout the entire season, and was the fulcrum of the side.

When compared to his positional peers in the Premier League that season, Rodri ranked in the top 1% for passes attempted (92.35) and pass completion percentage (91.2%), which showcased how effective he was at controlling matches from the heart of the midfield.

Following a stunning 2023/24 campaign, which culminated in the player helping Spain win Euro 2024, he was awarded the 2024 Ballon d’Or last October for his performance throughout the calendar year.

Kyle Walker lavished plenty of praise on his teammate in the aftermath, saying: “For him, it’s absolutely fantastic. I think he’s been nothing short of probably perfect in the last couple of seasons. You can see what he means to Man City.”

How much is he currently worth, however?

Rodri’s market valuation at Manchester City

According to Transfermarkt, Rodri is now valued at a whopping €130m (£111m), and this could even rise further should he return to the player he was before suffering an ACL injury last September.

Indeed, this value is even higher than Wirtz’s value and proves just how excellent a signing the Spaniard has been for the club over the previous six years, showing that City have hit the jackpot with him.

It may not be a coincidence that City’s performance levels declined, missing out on the title for the first time in five years, when they couldn’t call on the 28-year-old after his injury.

He will return shortly, and a solid pre-season will ensure the player returns to full fitness ahead of the 2025/26 campaign, that’s for sure.

Wirtz would make for a sublime signing if Guardiola can stump up the cash, but his business in the past suggests he has struck gold on someone like Rodri.

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