Florian Wirtz
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Florian Richard Wirtz | ||
| Date of birth | 3 May 2003 | ||
| Place of birth | Pulheim, Germany | ||
| Height | 1.76 m (5 ft 9+1⁄2 in)[1] | ||
| Position(s) | Attacking midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Bayer Leverkusen | ||
| Number | 27 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| –2010 | Grün-Weiß Brauweiler | ||
| 2010–2020 | 1. FC Köln | ||
| 2020– | Bayer Leverkusen | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2020– | Bayer Leverkusen | 29 | (5) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2018 | Germany U15 | 1 | (0) |
| 2018–2019 | Germany U16 | 5 | (0) |
| 2019–2021 | Germany U17 | 4 | (0) |
| 2020– | Germany U21 | 3 | (0) |
|
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 21 March 2021 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 17 November 2020 | |||
Florian Richard Wirtz (born 3 May 2003) is a German footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder for Bundesliga club Bayer Leverkusen.[2]
Club career
Regarded as a big upcoming 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.[3] 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.[4] In doing so, he overtook Kai Havertz as Leverkusen's youngest player to debut in the league, at the age of 17 years and 15 days.[5]
On 6 June 2020, Wirtz scored his first goal for Leverkusen in the 89th minute of their 2–4 home loss against Bayern Munich. This made Wirtz the youngest goalscorer in Bundesliga history at the age of 17 years and 34 days.[6] However, this record would later be surpassed following Youssoufa Moukoko's goal less than a year later (aged 16 years and 28 days).[7]
Wirtz signed a contract extension with the club on 23 December 2020, extending his deal until 2023.[8] On 19 January 2021, he scored the winner in the 80th minute of Leverkusen's 2–1 home victory over Borussia Dortmund.[9] 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.[10]
International career
Wirtz received his first call up to the senior team for 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifiers in March 2021.[11]
Playing style
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.[12]
Personal life
Wirtz was born in the Brauweiler district of Pulheim, North Rhine-Westphalia.[2]
Wirtz's parents are his agents; his father, Hans-Joachim, is also the chairman of Grün-Weiß Brauweiler, the club that Wirtz played for as a child before joining Köln. His eldest sister Juliane is a professional footballer as well; she made her Women's Bundesliga debut at the age of sixteen and represented Germany at youth level.[3]
Career statistics
Club
As of match played 21 March 2021.[2][13]
| Club | Season | League | National Cup | Europe | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Bayer Leverkusen | 2019–20 | Bundesliga | 7 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1[a] | 0 | 9 | 1 |
| 2020–21 | 22 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 7[a] | 2 | 31 | 7 | ||
| Career total | 29 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 8 | 2 | 40 | 8 | ||
- ^ a b Appearance(s) in UEFA Europa League
References
- ^ "Florian Wirtz". Bayer 04 Leverkusen (in German). Retrieved 26 March 2021.
- ^ a b c Florian Wirtz at WorldFootball.net
- ^ a b "Florian Wirtz: Who is Bayer Leverkusen's new wonderkid and youngest-ever debutant?". Bundesliga. 22 May 2020. Retrieved 5 March 2021.
- ^ "Germany » Bundesliga 2019/2020 » 26. Round » Werder Bremen – Bayer Leverkusen". WorldFootball.net. 18 May 2020. Retrieved 18 May 2020.
- ^ "Florian Wirtz replaces Kai Havertz as Bayer Leverkusen's youngest ever player". Bundesliga. Deutsche Fußball Liga. 18 May 2020. Retrieved 18 May 2020.
- ^ "Auch Leverkusen kein Hindernis: Bayern marschiert weiter zum Titel" [Leverkusen no hindrance either: Bayern marches on to the title]. kicker (in German). 6 June 2020. Retrieved 6 June 2020.
- ^ "Youssoufa Moukoko becomes youngest ever Bundesliga scorer for Borussia Dortmund against Union Berlin". Bundesliga. 18 December 2020. Retrieved 18 December 2020.
- ^ "Florian Wirtz extends contract to 2023". Bayer 04 Leverkusen. 23 December 2020. Retrieved 5 March 2021.
- ^ "Florian Wirtz fires Bayer Leverkusen back to winning ways against Borussia Dortmund". Bundesliga. 19 January 2021. Retrieved 19 January 2021.
- ^ "Florian Wirtz continues to rewrite Bundesliga history for Bayer Leverkusen". Bundesliga. 6 February 2021. Retrieved 5 March 2021.
- ^ "START INS EM-JAHR: MUSIALA UND WIRTZ ERSTMALS IM DFB-TEAM". dfb.de. Retrieved 25 March 2021.
- ^ "Wonderkids: Florian Wirtz | Soccerment Research". Soccerment. 12 January 2021. Retrieved 5 February 2021.
- ^ "F. Wirtz". Soccerway. Perform Group. Retrieved 5 March 2021.
External links
- Florian Wirtz at DFB (also available in German)
- Florian Wirtz at kicker (in German)
- Florian Wirtz at Soccerway
- Florian Wirtz at FootballDatabase.eu
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