Pep Guardiola has held talks with Florian Wirtz as Manchester City intensifies their pursuit to sign the German star in a record-breaking £126 million deal.

The 22-year-old Bayer Leverkusen forward flew from Maastricht in the Netherlands to Blackpool, as City aims to secure his signature ahead of Bayern Munich.

Wirtz, one of Europe's most coveted talents, traveled with his agent father to discuss a potential move to the Etihad Stadium before returning home last night.

Guardiola has identified Wirtz as his primary target to rebuild the City squad and replace veteran Kevin De Bruyne, 33, who is set to leave when his contract expires in June.

City's proposed offer would surpass the British transfer record of £115 million, established when Chelsea signed Moises Caicedo from Brighton in 2023.

Wirtz, accompanied by his father Hans and mother Karin, departed on a private jet at 10am on Tuesday from Maastricht-Aachen Airport in the Netherlands to Blackpool, according to German newspaper Bild.

They were then driven to Manchester for a meeting with Guardiola, before flying back at 4:40pm.

The discreet airport near the German-Dutch border was selected to avoid drawing attention.

However, Bild obtained photos of Wirtz's parents at the Dutch airport as they returned to their car.

A reporter approached Wirtz's father Hans, who shook his hand but declined to comment.

Wirtz has previously discussed matters with Guardiola, but the forward has not finalized his decision, with two years remaining on his Leverkusen contract.

His current club prefers to sell to City rather than their Bundesliga rivals.

He recently recovered from a knee injury that caused him to miss the Champions League last-16 match against Bayern, yet he has recorded 16 goals and 15 assists in 44 games this season.

Bayern, who won the Bundesliga this season after finishing behind Leverkusen last year, are offering £84 million for Wirtz.