News broke this morning that Liverpool FC had suddenly pulled ahead in the race for Bayer 04 Leverkusen and Germany men’s national team star Florian Wirtz — at Bayern Munich’s expense. Now, the mega-transfer — Leverkusen has reportedly been holding out for some €150M — is looking close to happening.

Despite being under contract until the summer of 2026, Alonso bid farewell to Bayer Leverkusen at the end of the 2024–25 season to return to the Spanish capital. The 43-year-old is the new manager of Real Madrid, replacing the winningest manager in club history, Carlo Ancelotti.

Sitting in sixth place, Mainz head into the final matchday of the season against dethroned champions Bayer Leverkusen with the aim of securing a European spot. With just about an hour to go before kick-off at MEWA Arena, the lineups have been announced and can be seen below.

Frankfurt are currently third in the Bundesliga heading into the final weekend of the campaign, with Koch having only missed four of their league matches. He has also chipped in with three goals from his 29 appearances.

Bayer Leverkusen lost 2-4 against Borussia Dortmund in Xabi Alonso's final game as head coach at the BayArena in the German Bundesliga 2024-25 on 11 May

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Transfer expert Fabrizio Romano posted that Bayer Leverkusen is engaged in talks with former Bayern Munich campus coach Erik ten Hag: ⚫️ Bayer Leverkusen made progress in talk

According to reports, Liverpool have 'presented an astronomical offer' to Bayer Leverkusen as they look to sign Bayern Munich target Florian Wirtz.