Liverpool are reportedly exploring a deal that could see Harvey Elliott join Crystal Palace in exchange for Adam Wharton.
Reach PLC sports editor Danny Gallagher suggested on X (formerly Twitter) that the deal “could move quickly if all parties agree”.
The 23-year-old returned to Anfield following an unproductive loan spell with Unai Emery’s Aston Villa, in which he secured 11 appearances (284 minutes) in the 2025/ 26 season.
The report in question does importantly note that new Liverpool boss Andoni Iraola would like to have a clear say in any exits at the club before they are confirmed.
Understand Liverpool are looking into the logistics to see Harvey Elliott move to Crystal Palace as part of an Adam Wharton agreement, despite Iraola still wanting to run the rule over whether an exit is necessary. Something that could move quickly if all parties agree.
— Danny Gallagher (@Danny7Gallagher) July 5, 2026
And having not yet had a proper look at Elliott (Liverpool pre-season begins on July 13), you could understand the Basque-born head coach being a little miffed at the idea of the midfielder being moved on so early.
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Of course, from the club’s perspective, the Englishman has spent a year basically not playing competitive football, while Wharton allegedly remains of serious interest to the club’s decision-makers.
Likewise, if we’re assuming that Crystal Palace will use Elliot Anderson’s sale price of £116m as a benchmark fee, we can understand why Liverpool might want to use a player as a makeweight in a potential deal.
This would also go some way to explaining prior reporting on an alleged meeting having taken place last week between Liverpool and Palace officials.
We understand the attraction in bringing the Palace star to L4, given his remarkable ball-progression and creative capabilities.
It’s no coincidence that our struggles in progressing play coincided with the exit of arguably our most elite ball-progressor, Trent Alexander-Arnold, last term.
Of course, one could equally argue that several problems would be solved by signing a couple more bodies in the forward line, ensuring that we have appropriate pace on the wings. Not to mention the addition of a quality No.6 who can cover ground and has creative tendencies – someone like Lamine Camara.
But we digress. We’re still of the mind that Harvey Elliott could be an important piece of the puzzle for a manager like Iraola.
It’s worth noting that under Jurgen Klopp – a manager more stylistically similar to the 44-year-old than his predecessor, Arne Slot – our No.19 was relied upon as an extremely valuable squad option.
Would it be more worth our while to hold on to the midfielder – whose value has presumably taken a big hit after his loan spell in the Midlands – and make use of his talents this coming campaign?
Mind, an asking price of £40m-50m has been previously reported in June, but we can’t imagine Crystal Palace accepting that valuation to cut down the cost of Wharton.
If we’re expecting to potentially spend upwards of £100m on a winger – be it for either Bradley Barcola or Yan Diomande – we’d be far more inclined to see the club focus its efforts on completing other areas of business.
Camara would be one such target, and particularly viable at a reported £42.8m price tag. Likewise, we’d hope there would be room for a developmental option on the wings like Yankuba Minteh, to bolster our numbers.
If there’s then room in the budget for someone like Adam Wharton and an elite forward, we’re all for it.
But we’re quite keen on seeing numbers come through the door, rather than commit to transfers that feel like long-lasting sagas or kitty-shattering deals.
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