Florian Wirtz is on the verge of becoming the 10th football player to transfer for a fee in the nine-figure range, but Liverpool believes he will defy the pattern observed among other £100 million transfers.

Of the previous nine, how many of these have been a pound-for-pound success?

Neymar (Paris Saint-Germain), Kylian Mbappe (PSG), Philippe Coutinho (Barcelona), Joao Felix (Atletico Madrid), Enzo Fernandez (Chelsea), Antoine Griezmann (Barcelona), Jack Grealish (Manchester City), Declan Rice (Arsenal), Moises Caicedo (Chelsea).

Thus, Wirtz, whose transfer costs will be a base £100 million with possible additional fees up to £16 million, is expected to stand out from his predecessors. However, the Premier League champions, Liverpool, are confident that his value justifies the investment.

That is why owners Fenway Sports Group have sanctioned such an eye-watering investment, that is why manager Arne Slot and sporting director Richard Hughes went, as sources describe, ‘all out’ to get this transfer over the line.

Liverpool had fostered a relationship with the Wirtz family for some years, going back to when they kept an eye on the then-teenager at his former club Cologne. Bayer Leverkusen trained at Liverpool’s AXA Training Centre in November and he was impressed with the facilities.

This is the first marquee signing of the Reds’ bold new era led by Slot and Hughes, arguably the first elite-level player they have bought since Alisson or Virgil van Dijk – most other additions have tended to be promising stars with room for improvement.

Wirtz, of course, does have room for improvement. The 22-year-old, described as a ‘quiet guy with no ego’, knows that and Slot knows that. The Dutch manager, ultimately, was the man who tempted the German superstar to pick Liverpool over their rivals.

In many senses, Slot and Co had nothing to lose. A month ago, it looked certain that Wirtz was heading to German giants Bayern Munich. One source recently described Bayern as ‘sleeping at the wheel’ in terms of signing him.

Normally, the best talents in Germany are mopped up by the Bavarian super-power. Manchester City were also incredibly keen but pulled out of the race citing the astronomical costs involved. Or, in other words, both City and Bayern pulled out because he rejected them.

Wirtz had held talks with both Pep Guardiola and Bayern boss Vincent Kompany but it was Slot who convinced the family including father-cum-agent Hans-Joachim that Liverpool was the place for him. That, in itself, is a statement and a half.

After one eagle-eyed photographer snapped the Wirtz family in north west England, media speculation immediately said he was here to finalise a move to Manchester. Down the East Lancashire Road in Kirkby, though, Liverpool knew he was their man.

In fact, everyone has known the direction of travel for some weeks now. When asked by Mail Sport in Munich if he was ‘excited for Liverpool’, Wirtz nodded in our direction. Maybe it was a polite greeting but, whatever he meant by the nod, he knew he was bound for Merseyside.

Wirtz, in fact, had been telling people that a deal was complete all week. It was not, as the two clubs were thrashing out the finer details, but the player had been telling his confidantes that his move to Liverpool was done and dusted.

Liverpool’s third bid came 10 days ago and that was £100m plus £14m in add-ons but the pair continued to negotiate up until yesterday when they finally shook hands on £100m plus £16m in bonuses which include winning the league, Champions League and even the Ballon d’Or.

The Anfield power-brokers, of course, will not mind a jot if those add-ons are triggered. As a reminder from our dispatch from Munich last week, here are the verdicts of two German football experts as to what Liverpool are getting for their money.

‘He can control the game and the rhythm,’ says Maximilian Koch, chief reporter for the Abendzeitung newspaper. ‘He reminds me of Andres Iniesta, a very intelligent and creative player. He can also score and assist, which makes him a complete player.’

Fellow German football expert Heiko Niedderer, who has worked at BILD for 20 years covering the national team, says: ‘He’s one of the best offensive players we have had. We have the two of them, Musiala and Wirtz.

‘They are both pretty special but Wirtz is maybe even more complete now. He can do everything. He is really great on the ball, a great shooter, creating chances. He has developed really well.’

Rivals will sniff at the price tag but Liverpool have not got many bits of business wrong in the last decade. At 22, they think the German superstar is worth every penny despite risking such a big fee. Besides, they are already champions, what’s the Wirtz that can happen?