Liverpool’s opening Premier League fixtures against Bournemouth will pay undivided attention to club supporters, but the prospect of Alexander Isaac leading the way remains a fundamental idea of their minds.
Saga’s moves tweeted and squealed like distant thunder this summer, hoping ISAK would be called up by Sky Sports’ Jamie Carragher and welcomed “the best striker in the Premier League” over the course of the summer.
However, with Hugo Ekitike signing for Liverpool and already scoring, the upcoming fixture against the Cherries is filled with confidence that Arne Slot’s side has the means to have a successful title defense that he confidently won the league last year.
It’s not the only one on the FSG radar. Anfield’s summer transfer charge is led by Richard Hughes, who used Italian ties to attack the stunning deal for Palma’s Giovanni Leoni, one of Europe’s most talented teenage centre-backs.
With Crystal Palace’s Mark Guech ongoing, Liverpool’s work feels almost complete, but in reality it also happens in another midfielder.
Why Liverpool need a midfielder?
Florian Wirtz may have been called “the world’s best midfielder” by former Bayer Leverkusen striker Patrick Helmes, but the 10 Germans operate more within the crack between the front and center third, pulling the strings and making things go.
Liverpool must give some idea to those behind Germany, the hardworking pack at the heart of the engine.
Wembley Palace trinket Liverpool recorded that his sofa score recorded the Eagles, earning 60% of the ground battle. Ryan Greignbellch was away and Alexis Mac Alistair only played 19 minutes off the bench, but the gap between steel and tenacity was clear.
Liverpool needs someone to slot into anchors to organize, tackle and promote the flow of build-up play.
Well, someone could be Adam Wharton of Crystal Palace, and recent reports suggest that England International is a long-standing target for Liverpool.
But Wharton, the palace’s worth over £100 million and eager to sign the 22-year-old alongside Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur and even Real Madrid, FSG may want to use the negotiation channel with Selhurst Park to his advantage and put it on the basis of sealing off the astonishing signature.
After all, Wharton is one of the biggest British talents out there, and has plenty of potential to surpass his teammate Guehi.
What Adam Wharton brings to Liverpool
In January 2023, Crystal Palace signed Wharton from Blackburn Rovers at the Championship, and he later blossomed into one of the most exciting midfielders of British football.
Before tracking it on a display for commanders via Liverpool at last week’s Community Shield, Wharton, who helped support Oliver Grassner’s side towards winning last season’s FA Cup, is described as a “passing machine” by journalist Henry Winter.
Statistics boost that and there is no question. FBREF recorded Wharton, ranked in the top 9% of Europe’s top 5 league midfielders over the past year, with the top 7% of shot-making actions per 90 recorded, highlighting its ability to influence deep offensive transitions and promote build-up plays.
Given that Liverpool’s accumulated fulcrum retreated inwards under the wings of slots, Klopp and now Trent Alexander Arnold’s departure reorient the playmaking focus to the middle lane, Wharton is perfect for Merseysiders and finds the role that allows him to become one of the best growth in the business, one of the best in the world and one of the superstars.
In this way, Wharton might actually be a greater talent than Guehi. Especially since he has been a junior to his fellow countrymen for nearly four years and is already considered on teams like Liverpool and Real Madrid.
It’s fair to suggest that the Three Lions Maestro, compared to slot centerpiece Greygun Bellch, can see him settled down as a world-class player for several years under slot coaching, compared to how he compared in the Premier League last season.
PL 24/25 -Wharton vs Gravenberch | ||
|---|---|---|
Statistics (*per game) | Wharton | Gravenberch |
Game (start) | 20 (16) | 35 (35) |
the goal | 0 | 0 |
assist | 2 | 4 |
touch* | 45.7 | 66.4 |
Pass completed | 79% | 89% |
Key Pass* | 1.3 | 0.7 |
dribble* | 0.1 | 1.0 |
Ball recovery* | 5.1 | 5.3 |
Tackle + Intercept* | 2.7 | 3.5 |
Duels (winning)* | 3.2 | 5.0 |
Data based on sofa score | ||
Despite the injury issues last season, Metric revealed that Wharton made his mark, embracing Greygun Burch’s athleticism and himself from a defensive standpoint – maintaining a more stable and creative flow than the Liverpool star.
His first foray into the English top flight was even achieved by Liper’s results, with Wharton averaging three tackles per game, quickly turning the heads of the division’s elite members.
Guehi has what he needs to become a mainstay of Liverpool’s backline in the coming years, but Wharton is already considered a £100 million player, especially after Virgil Van Dijk cut his red race, but as Talent Scout Jacek Kulig pointed out, he is “a very special player in the maker.”
Will Liverpool be seeing Tiago Alcantara’s reincarnation with the Eagles’ outlook? Certainly he has talent, finesse and intelligence.
Finishing this summer’s deal may be too far for FSG, but Wharton’s sale is unlikely to be approved at all before 2026, and given his long-term interest in Liverpool players, they will be hit with future attacks and beating the number one outfit for his signature.
