‘We went for Him first,but Arteta is trying to play a smart game here’: Man City boss Pep Guardiola confessed £87m Bundesliga striker now want to join Arsenal over Man City

Florian Wirtz is wanted by a number of teams, including Arsenal, but Bayer Leverkusen is demanding £87 million for their attacking midfield player.

The 20-year-old is reportedly attracting interest from Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur, per a report in Mundo Deportivo.

Florian Wirtz has been outstanding so far this season. He is certainly living up to his manager’s assessment, which compared him to Lionel Messi.

This season, Wirtz has eight assists and five goals in the Bundesliga and Champions League. And he kept Leverkusen atop the Bundesliga table over the weekend with a spectacular goal.

Newcastle is one of the teams most interested in getting Wirtz into the Premier League, according to writer Dean Jones of Ranks FC. But according to Mundo Deportivo, Arsenal is now a contender.

Leverkusen, however, will not let him go cheap. Actually, they would accept nothing less than £70 million and would like up to €100 million.

The news could discourage the Gunners from negotiating.

There may be disagreements among Arsenal fans over pursuing Wirtz. Without a doubt, he is a “special” talent with a promising future.

But he’s not a naturally gifted striker. And it appears that Mikel Arteta has that in mind as they try to make the final push and contend for the Premier League title.

Given Arsenal’s reputation for developing young talent, signing Wirtz would be an easy choice if he were available for less money.

But in recent years, they have also purchased and acquired players like Kai Havertz and Fabio Vieira.