Patrick Brischetto

Florian Wirtz has just become Liverpool's most expensive transfer ever, and one of the most expensive moves in English football history.

The 22-year-old German has signed from Bayer Leverkusen for £116m (AU$241 million), and for a fee of that size, will most likely go straight into Arne Slot's starting XI.

It is a huge statement of intent from the champions, who have already added Wirtz's former teammate Jeremie Frimpong and are also close to signing Bournemouth's young gun Milos Kerkez.

Liverpool are usually a fairly frugal club compared to some of their Premier League rivals, but that is set to change with the signing of Florian Wirtz.

The 22-year-old is close to securing a move to Liverpool which would see them smash their transfer record - and the British transfer record - and spend up to £116.5 million (AU$244 million) to sign the world class midfielder.

In the end, it was one of the calmest World Cup qualifications Australia has ever had.

In the early hours of Wednesday morning, a 2-1 win over Saudi Arabia in a half-empty King Abdullah Sports City Stadium in Jeddah was enough for the Socceroos to make an incredible sixth straight World Cup; even then the jeopardy was lowered by the fact Australia only needed to avoid a 5-0 defeat to qualify.

This belies the rollercoaster and chaotic nature of their third round of World Cup qualifying, with a dramatic change in coach, and where automatic qualification often seemed a distant dream.

We look back at how Australia managed to get back on the right track and qualify for the 2026 World Cup in North America.

Ange Postecoglou's Premier League debut came and went in an exciting 2-2 draw with Thomas Frank's Brentford in west London, which would end up being a showcase of the best and worst of Tottenham Hotspur under the Australian.

Two seasons later, Postecoglou is gone after Spurs' worst Premier League season, and the club has officially made an approach for Frank to be his replacement.

One World Cup, one European Championship, one Champions League title and 278 Premier League appearances, not a bad career for Juan Mata, the boy from Asturias, who admitted his dream initially was just to make it to Real Oviedo.

In November of 2001, if you listened carefully you could hear it in the faintest of whispers.

Football fans around Australia were finally daring to dream their World Cup qualification nightmare was coming to an end, and that they would be going to the 2002 tournament in Japan and Korea Republic.

They were 1-0 up in their Intercontinental play-off against Uruguay after a 1-0 win at the MCG in front of nearly 85,000 fans, and all they had to do was avoid defeat in Montevideo to end their decades of pain.

Instead, they were treated to Uruguayan hospitality from the moment they touched down in the country, leading to a 3-0 defeat and Australia going back home heartbroken and with tails between their legs.

With the Premier League transfer window now open, all 20 Premier League clubs are looking to move fast to secure their top targets.

Whether it be champions Liverpool, mid-table Everton or newly-promoted Sunderland, every side has areas where they need to add depth, or positions where they want to add a big name to boost their chances of success.

Outgoings could also complicate matters, with some teams potentially facing a battle to keep their best players.

Optus Sport looks at what every Premier League club needs in the current transfer window.

Joe Montemurro has a big task on his hands after being named the new Matildas head coach.

Signing a deal that takes him to the 2028 Olympic games, it means Australia have ended a 10-month wait to appoint a permanent successor to Tony Gustavsson.

Montemurro must hit the ground running, as there are only nine months and a handful of international windows before the 2026 Asian Cup, which Australia are hosting.

With all of this in mind, here are five things Montemurro must sort out at the helm of the Matildas.

New Matildas coach Joe Montemurro has assured the country he will bring success to the national team, but warned it would not be an instant process.

After months of speculation, the former Lyon and Arsenal boss put pen to paper on a deal to finally become the permanent successor to Tony Gustavsson, signing on until the 2028 Olympics.

Luis Enrique is the man of the moment in the football world.

He has just led PSG to their first ever Champions League title after a stunning 5-0 win over Inter Milan in the final in Munich.