Manchester City ace Ilkay Gundogan has cast doubts on Florian Wirtz's "world-class" status amid reports the young star is poised to join Liverpool for a record-smashing fee. The Reds are reportedly gearing up to set new British transfer records with their coup of Wirtz this summer, despite their hesitation to meet Bayer Leverkusen's hefty £126million price tag, having beat both City and Bayern Munich in the race for the golden boy of German football's signature . Liverpool are said to be prepared to fork out £100m upfront to secure Wirtz as they strive to finalise the deal for the 22-year-old attacking midfielder. However, negotiations with the Bundesliga outfit are ongoing regarding additional fees, the structure of the transfer, and payment schedules, with no definitive agreement in place yet. The Premier League champions tabled a third offer last week for the German international, proposing £100m guaranteed plus £14m in potential bonuses. While this bid fell short of Leverkusen's valuation, it was not dismissed outright. Discussions have continued since the bid was submitted. Liverpool are holding firm in these talks, insisting they will not match the £126.5m asking price, reports the Mirror . No matter how near the transaction is to being sealed, Liverpool are set to shatter the Premier League's transfer record for the young sensation, who is keen on an Anfield switch after declining overtures from Manchester City and Bayern Munich just last month. It's a whopper of a fee, especially given that Wirtz's fellow German international Gundogan reckoned he wasn't quite world-class earlier this year. Gundogan is likely to miss the chance of being club mates with Wirtz, who was tipped to step into Kevin De Bruyne's boots after the Belgian ace waved goodbye to the Etihad. Gundogan, familiar with Wirtz's skills from their time together in the Germany squad alongside Bayern's prodigy Jamal Musiala, rates both highly but reckons they need to play for a team who are Champions League contenders to hit world-class status – a dream Wirtz will realise if he signs with Liverpool. "They're very close to world class. Maybe they are not yet there but they could be the best in the world in a short amount of time," Gundogan dished out earlier this year. "I feel like it is just proving themselves a little bit more. They are very young. Jamal has done a bit more than Florian because he played a little more at that high level. "When you want to be on top and admired as the world's best one day, it's necessary to win the Champions League and Jamal has already played a few years in the Champions League but hasn't won it yet. "For Flo, it is the first season with Champions League with Leverkusen. To be there every single year, to try to get to the semis and final and win it at one point is unavoidable to be world class. "Of course, they have the potential and the quality. I played with them for the last two years in the national team and both of them have everything and they prove it with their teams and the national team. They are both great guys and great characters so they will be there at one point." Bayern were previously tipped as the frontrunners to snap up Wirtz, but the Merseysiders nipped in and outpaced the German giants, while City gave up when it became clear Wirtz wanted to sign for their rivals Liverpool instead. Over at Anfield, the Reds have kicked off the summer window on a high note, with sporting director Richard Hughes securing deals for Jeremie Frimpong and young shot-stopper Armin Pecsi. Giorgi Mamardashvili is also set to bolster Arne Slot's squad after agreeing last year to switch from Valencia.