Florian Wirtz

Florian Richard Wirtz (born 3 May 2003) is a German professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder for Bundesliga club Bayer Leverkusen and the Germany national team. He is regarded as one of the best young players in the world.

Early life
Wirtz was born in the Brauweiler district of Pulheim, North Rhine-Westphalia.

Club career
Regarded as a big talent in German football, Wirtz joined the youth team of 1. FC Köln in 2010, where he remained until he was signed by Bayer Leverkusen in January 2020. His transfer to Leverkusen was controversial, as Köln felt that Leverkusen violated a gentleman's agreement between the two clubs in signing Wirtz.

After impressing for the under-17 team, Wirtz made his senior professional debut for Leverkusen in the Bundesliga on 18 May 2020, starting in an away match against Werder Bremen. In doing so, he overtook Kai Havertz as Leverkusen's youngest player in the league, at the age of 17 years and 15 days. On 6 June, Wirtz scored his first goal for Leverkusen in the 89th minute of their 4–2 home loss against Bayern Munich, making Wirtz the youngest goalscorer in Bundesliga history at the age of 17 years and 34 days. This record would later be surpassed by Youssoufa Moukoko less than a year later, aged 16 years and 28 days. On 22 October, he scored his first goal in European competitions in a 6–2 win over Nice during the 2020–21 Europa League.

Wirtz signed a contract extension with the club on 23 December 2020, extending his deal until 2023. On 19 January 2021, he scored the winner in the 80th minute of Leverkusen's 2–1 home victory over Borussia Dortmund. Wirtz scored his fifth career Bundesliga goal in a 5–2 win against VfB Stuttgart on 6 February, becoming the first player in league history to reach this benchmark before turning eighteen years old. He extended his contract until 2026 on 3 May 2021, the day of his 18th birthday. On 28 November 2021, Wirtz netted his fifth Bundesliga goal of the season in a 1–3 win against RB Leipzig to become the first player under the age of 19 to score more than ten Bundesliga goals. On 15 December, he became the youngest player to reach 50 Bundesliga appearances against Hoffenheim, at the age of 18 years and 223 days.

On 13 March 2022, Wirtz tore his anterior cruciate ligament in a 1–0 defeat against 1. FC Köln, hence he missed the rest of the 2021–22 Bundesliga season. On 22 January 2023, he played his first competitive match in ten months, coming off the bench, in a 3–2 away win over Borussia Mönchengladbach. On 26 October 2023, he scored a goal and provided a hat-trick of assists in a 5–1 victory over Qarabağ during the 2023–24 Europa League group stage. On 14 April 2024, Wirtz scored his first career hat-trick, leading his team to a historic 5–0 title-clinching win over Werder Bremen, which gave Bayer their first German championship.

International career
Wirtz received his first call up to the senior team for 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifiers in March 2021. He debuted on 2 September in a World Cup qualifier against Liechtenstein, coming on as a substitute for Joshua Kimmich in the 82nd minute, ending in a 2–0 away victory for the Germans.

In May 2022, coach Hansi Flick expressed his willingness to name Wirtz in the final squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup, yet he missed the tournament due to his ACL injury. On 23 March 2024, he scored his first goal for the squad in seven seconds in a friendly match against France in a 2–0 victory, becoming the second fastest goal in international football history behind Austrian footballer Christoph Baumgartner, who scored a goal in just six seconds in another friendly match against Slovakia on the same day.

On 7 June 2024, Wirtz was named in Germany's squad for UEFA Euro 2024. On 14 June, he netted the opener of the tournament in a 5–1 victory over Scotland, becoming the youngest German player to score in the European Championship, aged 21 years and 42 days, breaking the previous record of Kai Havertz. In the quarter-final against Spain, Wirtz replaced Leroy Sané at half-time and scored an 89th-minute equalising goal which took the match to extra time. Spain went on to win 2–1 with a 119th-minute goal, knocking Germany out of the tournament.

Style of play
Wirtz is an attacking midfielder, although he can also play wide on the left as an inverted winger. He has a marked offensive mindset and is a very dynamic midfielder, who covers a lot of ground.

Personal life
Wirtz's parents are his agents; his father, Hans-Joachim, is also chairman of Grün-Weiß Brauweiler, the club that Wirtz played for as a child before joining Köln. His elder sister Juliane Wirtz is a professional footballer as well; she made her Women's Bundesliga debut at the age of sixteen and represented Germany at youth level.

International

 * Scores and results list Germany's goal tally first.

Honours
Bayer 04 Leverkusen
 * Bundesliga: 2023–24
 * DFB-Pokal: 2023–24
 * UEFA Europa League runner-up: 2023–24

Germany U21
 * UEFA European Under-21 Championship: 2021

Individual
 * Fritz Walter Medal U19 Gold: 2022
 * Fritz Walter Medal U17 Gold: 2020
 * Bundesliga Player of the Month: September 2021, October 2023, December 2023, February 2024
 * Bundesliga Player of the Season: 2023–24
 * Bundesliga Team of the Season: 2021–22, 2023–24
 * VDV Bundesliga Newcomer of the Season: 2021–22
 * VDV Bundesliga Player of the Season: 2023–24
 * VDV Bundesliga Team of the Season: 2021–22, 2023–24
 * UEFA Europa League Young Player of the Season: 2022–23, 2023–24
 * UEFA Europa League Team of the Season: 2023–24
 * The Athletic Bundesliga Player of the Season: 2023–24