Bayer Leverkusen<\/a> striker Victor Boniface has heaped praise on club teammate Florian Wirtz, describing the German international as a \u201cfantastic player\u201d and admitting he hadn\u2019t heard of him prior to their first on-pitch meeting, Soccernet.ng<\/a> reports<\/strong>.<\/p>\n Before moving to Leverkusen in the summer of 2023, Boniface<\/a> was a rising star at Belgian side Union Saint-Gilloise.<\/p>\n The Nigerian forward had no idea who Wirtz was \u2014 until the two crossed paths in the quarter-finals of the UEFA Europa League<\/a> earlier that same year.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen we played them with St. Gilloise in the UEFA Europa League, I knew nothing about Flo because I didn\u2019t watch that many Leverkusen games as we were playing too,\u201d Boniface recalled in a chat with Bundesliga.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cBefore the game, a journalist came to me and said, are you looking forward to the game? I said yes. And he asked me, what do you think of Flo? I said, no disrespect, I don\u2019t really watch Bundesliga. I don\u2019t really know much of him. The guy then said to me, you\u2019re going to know him in the game.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n And he did. In the first leg of the Europa League quarter-final, both players scored in a 1-1 draw in Germany.<\/p>\n Leverkusen won the return leg 4-1, progressing 5-2 on aggregate, and Boniface\u2019s performance was enough to convince the Bundesliga side to sign him that summer.<\/p>\n READ MORE\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n Boniface has since formed a formidable partnership with Wirtz at Leverkusen. The duo were central to Xabi Alonso\u2019s side winning their first-ever Bundesliga title, securing the DFB-Pokal, and reaching the Europa League final, where they eventually lost to Ademola Lookman\u2019s Atalanta.<\/p>\n \u201cAs a striker like me, you feel happy every time on the pitch when you have a player like Flo behind you because, in a game, you have one or two chances coming from him. You just have to convert them,\u201d Boniface said.<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s a fantastic player to watch and play with. I feel happy to have someone like this behind me. We have a really good connection on the pitch, and I really appreciate it.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n The 24-year-old Super Eagles striker has been linked with a number of Europe\u2019s top clubs following his breakout season in Germany. In January, Boniface was close to moving to Saudi Arabia while Wirtz is reportedly a target for Spanish giants Real Madrid<\/a>.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, with just four games remaining in the 2024\/25 Bundesliga campaign, Boniface insists there\u2019s still everything to play for as Leverkusen try to defend their crown.<\/p>\n Bayern Munich, who lost their grip on the title to Leverkusen last season, currently sit eight points clear at the top of the table. But Boniface is adamant the race isn\u2019t over yet.<\/p>\n However, if Bayern beat Mainz at the Allianz Arena and Leverkusen fail to win against Augsburg, the Bavarians will seal a record-extending 34th Bundesliga crown.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n![\"Soccer](\"https:\/\/soccernet.ng\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/GiYdfqiWsAEk0-T-750x584.jpeg\")
Soccer What Boniface said of Leverkusen teammate Wirtz<\/h2>\n
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