Why Liverpool have become favourites for Adam Wharton transfer after big career call from Crystal Palace’s England international midfielder

Palace will be desperate to hold onto their star midfielder, as rumours linking Marc Guehi to Liverpool and Eberechi Eze to Arsenal continue to spread. The 21-year-old is happy at Selhurst Park, with The Sun reporting that he is leaning towards staying with the Eagles for one more season.

That decision could make Liverpool favourites for his signature. The Reds have spent big this off-season, most notably splashing £116m on German superstar Florian Wirtz. Arne Slot's side have retained an interest in Wharton for the past few months, but would prefer to wait to secure his services after big changes to their squad.

Tottenham are also rumoured to be interested, while Real Madrid are also believed to be admirers of the ex-Blackburn man's talents. Rovers are due a 15% cut of any future profit Palace make on the £18m they spent on Wharton 15 months ago. Palace should be able to command a significant fee, as the 21-year-old has four years remaining on his deal.

Even though there is a countdown on Wharton's departure from the club, his decision to stay even for one more season will come as welcome news to a fanbase that has had little to celebrate, and every reason to protest of late. The Eagles have had their wings clipped by UEFA after winning the FA Cup, dropping into the Conference League as the governing body's rules on multi-club ownership prohibited them from competing in the Europa League. The club is challenging the ruling.

UEFA's decision has made holding onto their prized assets in Eze, Guehi and Wharton even trickier. The young midfielder could well see his importance to Oliver Glasner's team grow in the 2025-26 season.