Crystal Palace midfielder Adam Wharton has allegedly laid out his demands to make the move to Premier League champions Liverpool in a £50m deal this summer.
All throughout the 2024-25 campaign, Arne Slot has witnessed Alexis Mac Allister and Ryan Gravenberch excel in the middle of the park, and the former took home the man-of-the-match prize from their title-clinching 5-1 battering of Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday.
Mac Allister put the Reds 2-1 up on the day with a stunning strike from outside the box, prior to which Gravenberch had prevented Archie Gray from latching onto a loose pass by effectively getting his body in the way.
However, Mac Allister and Gravenberch have been short of genuine cover all season, and Slot's midfield ranks could be thinned further if both Wataru Endo and Tyler Morton leave this summer.
While Gravenberch and Mac Allister are expected to continue as the first-choice double pivot when fully fit, Liverpool should be open to the right opportunity in the market, and Wharton is said to be a name on their radar.
Wharton 'wants game time assurances' to make Liverpool move
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The Englishman has thrived in the Crystal Palace midfield since joining from Blackburn Rovers in 2024 and put in another masterful display in Saturday's 3-0 FA Cup semi-final success over Aston Villa.
Wharton and Palace will now butt heads with Manchester City in next month's final, as the Eagles attempt to win the FA Cup at the third time of asking following final defeats in 1990 and 2016.
Following that Wembley showdown, though, The Sun claims that Liverpool could plot a £50m swoop for Wharton, whom Anfield transfer chiefs are 'focused' on as their primary midfield target.
The report adds that the former Blackburn Rovers man could be persuaded to move to Anfield, but Liverpool would need to guarantee him regular game time if he is to leave Selhurst Park this summer.
Bayern Munich and Real Madrid are also rumoured to have been keeping tabs on Wharton, but they are not expected to step up their interest due to his relative lack of playing time this season.
The 21-year-old has made 25 appearances in all competitions in the 2024-25 campaign, including 15 Premier League starts, having missed three months with a groin injury between November and January.
What would Wharton bring to Liverpool?
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Any Liverpool fans who tuned into Saturday's FA Cup semi-final may have been sold on Wharton there and then, as the Englishman covered every blade of the Wembley grass and refused to give up lost causes.
Wharton put in five tackles and lost just two of his seven ground duels at the weekend, but it is the 21-year-old's exceptional passing range that catches the eye the most.
Wharton averages just over 7.5 progressive passes per game; out of all midfielders in Europe's big five leagues over the past 365 days, that number puts him into the top 8%.
As Liverpool are due to lose Trent Alexander-Arnold and his unrivalled ball-spraying skills, adding Wharton to the ranks is a no-brainer, especially if a different kind of full-back in Conor Bradley is trusted to fill Alexander-Arnold's boots.
Ben Knapton
