Adam Wharton has praised the quality of Liverpool on the break after facing them with Crystal Palace on Saturday.
Like the rest of his Palace teammates, Wharton had a good record against the Reds before this weekend’s match, but has finally tasted defeat to Arne Slot’s side.
There were always going to be eyes on the 22-year-old on Saturday after reports linking him with a summer move to Liverpool ramped up during the week.
And having seen the Reds up close and personal, Wharton admitted that though he felt Palace largely controlled them, Liverpool’s class in transition was still impressive.
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Liverpool v Crystal Palace - Premier League
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Wharton admits Liverpool are a ‘top team’
As Liverpool search for the right player to add a little more oomph to their midfield, there have been claims that Wharton is a ‘dream’ target for the summer.
There were glimpses of why on Saturday, even though the England man came away having generally lost the midfield battle.
For Wharton himself, he was left disappointed by the result, but still found time to praise Liverpool’s ability to hit teams on the counter-attack.
Crystal Palace players, led by Adam Wharton, warm up ahead of their Premier League match against Liverpool at Anfield
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“Obviously we were disappointed with the result,” he said to Palace TV.
“We were coming here to get the win. I felt the performance was good, though. We can look at it and take the positives. We created some good chances and on another day we score a few more goals.
“They were clinical and effective with the chances they got,” Wharton added.
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Florian Wirtz knee slides in celebration after scoring for Liverpool during their Premier League match against Crystal Palace at Anfield (Credit: Getty Images/Liverpool FC).
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“We can look back on the positives, but ultimately we’re disappointed with the result. I think in the first-half we had a couple of good chances. We controlled them pretty well.
“But they had two breakaways and obviously they’re a top team on the break. They had two half-chances and took them.”
It will be fascinating to see whether Liverpool choose to seriously pursue Wharton this summer in an attempt to add his passing talents to the squad.
Though there are some areas of his game – a lack of speed and physicality especially – that do not look well-suited to this Liverpool team, his ability to dictate matches and spot a pass could improve the Reds in transition even further.
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