Leverkusen boss open to bringing back Liverpool's Florian Wirtz and Arsenal's Kai Havertz in the future

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·15 March 2026

Leverkusen boss open to bringing back Liverpool's Florian Wirtz and Arsenal's Kai Havertz in the future

Appearing on the Sport1 program “Doppelpass” on Sunday, Bayer Leverkusen sporting managing director Simon Rolfes ruled out the possibility of re-signing Julian Brandt from Borussia Dortmund when the midfielder’s contract expires this summer.

Discussing the potential return of other former players to the BayArena, Rolfes said he would be open to a move for Arsenal’s Kai Havertz or Liverpool’s Florian Wirtz should the chance to sign one of them arise.

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“I’m generally skeptical about bringing former players back. But with Kai [Havertz] and Florian Wirtz, I would make an exception,” Rolfes said.

Speaking specifically about Havertz, who Bayer 04 faced in the Champions League last week, Rolfes added:

“He spent ten years in our youth system. We maintain close contact with Kai, and if the situation arises, we would need to have a conversation.

“At the moment, however, he is in a different phase of his career and feels very comfortable at Arsenal. He left the club to reach the top of world football.”