Liverpool report: Adam Wharton move edges closer, with 'firm plans' on cards

Liverpool are looking to strengthen their midfield, with Adam Wharton a serious target.

The Reds are the only club in the Premier League to have recorded five wins out of five at the start of the season, but it hasn't been without its drama, as Liverpool have relied on late goals so far, with Arne Slot's side still finding its groove.

The prospect of this team firing on all cylinders is a scary one for the rest of the league – and they could well be about to strengthen even further, with the arrival of one of England's most promising midfielders in the shape of Adam Wharton.

Adam Wharton is on the wishlist for Liverpool, along with two other names for 2026

Liverpool spent £419 million in an unprecedented summer, strengthening with two new full-backs (Jeremie Frimpong and Milos Kerkez), a centre-back (Giovanni Leoni), two new strikers (Alexander Isak and Hugo Ekitike) and a no.10 (Florian Wirtz).

One surprise was that Slot didn't pursue another deep-lying midfielder after missing out on the capture of Martin Zubimendi the year before – but the arrival of a new no.6 now appears to be a priority at Anfield.

TEAMtalk have noted that Wharton, recognised in FourFourTwo's list of the best defensive midfielders in the world, is a serious option for Slot next summer, as he looks to improve his midfield options.

Ryan Gravenberch and Alexis Mac Allister were constants last season in a double-pivot, though the arrival of Wirtz has posed questions of where to deploy Dominik Szoboszlai, with the Hungarian used at full-back in Frimpong's absence before returning to his natural position of no.10 at the weekend for the Merseyside Derby.

Wharton offers progression with his passing, has excellent positioning and can dictate the tempo of games, which Liverpool have missed this season whenever Mac Allister has been unavailable.

FourFourTwo understands that Slot is happy with his options in the centre of midfield right now – with Curtis Jones another superb option in midfield – but with Crystal Palace driving a hard bargain for their talent, it may take a record sale to see Wharton leave Selhurst Park.

The Eagles are said to value the England international at around £100m – and though Liverpool spent over nine figures on two players over the summer, they may not be keen on doing so again on a star who doesn't have an obvious place in their side right now.

Wharton is worth €45m, according to Transfermarkt. Liverpool, incidentally, travel away to Palace next Saturday, when Premier League action resumes.