Tom Olver
Published February 3, 2026 5:29pm
Updated February 3, 2026 5:41pm
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Manchester United’s midfield is still viewed as a potential weakness by club bosses (Picture: Getty)
Paul Merson says Manchester United should drop their interest in Elliot Anderson and place Adam Wharton at the top of their transfer wishlist for the summer.
United prioritised overhauling their misfiring attack last summer, with Matheus Cunha, Bryan Mbeumo and Benjamin Sesko arriving through the doors for a combined fee of around £200million.
The Red Devils had also been working to bring in a deep-lying midfielder to slot into Ruben Amorim’s much-maligned 3-4-3 system, identifying Anderson, Wharton and Carlos Baleba as potential targets.
Following an unsuccessful approach for Brighton’s Baleba, though, Amorim entered the 2024/25 campaign with the same group of midfielders that he finished with last season.
Michael Carrick has worked wonders with United’s midfield since taking over the reins from Amorim, with Kobbie Mainoo restored to the side and firing on all cylinders again alongside Casemiro and Bruno Fernandes.
However, that area of the pitch is still deemed a weakness by Old Trafford bosses and the impending departure of Casemiro has only accentuated the need for greater options in the middle of the park after an inactive January.
For some time now, United have been credited with a strong interest in Nottingham Forest star Anderson, 23, who has established himself as a regular in Thomas Tuchel’s England side ahead of this year’s World Cup.
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Anderson is not the answer for United, says Merson (Picture: Getty)
Wharton has earned himself plenty of admirers with his range of passing (Picture: Getty)
But giving his thoughts on Sky Sports News, Merson said he was yet to be ‘wowed’ by Anderson, while picking out England team-mate Wharton as a better fit for United in the summer.
‘I like Elliot Anderson, but I’m not wow-factored over him,’ Merson explained.
‘I like Elliot Anderson, but they’re fourth bottom of the league, Forest, so they’re not dominating all midfields, are they?
‘And if you’re a midfield player, that’s where the engine is. Do you know what I mean?
Merson is yet to be ‘wowed’ by Anderson (Picture: Getty)
‘I don’t see him running the show in midfield at Nottingham Forest, and we’re talking about Manchester United.’
The former Arsenal and Aston Villa midfielder concluded: ‘I would go for Adam Wharton ahead of him.’
Reports heading into the January transfer window suggested it would likely take an eye-watering offer of between £100m and £120m for Forest to even consider going into business for Anderson.
England colleague Wharton, meanwhile, is believed to be valued at between £80m and 100m by Palace.
Anderson and Wharton are competing for minutes in England’s midfield in World Cup year (Picture: Getty)
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Previous Page Next PageSpeaking to Sky Sports in October, Wharton made no secret of his ambitions to one day play on the grandest stages in the Champions League.
Asked if he had set himself any individual goals, the ex-Blackburn midfielder replied: ‘I’d say just play as many games as I can in the Premier League and try and reach the highest level possible.
‘Obviously there’s a World Cup in the summer. Everyone wants to play at the World Cup. You’d be stupid if you didn’t.
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‘Champions League, everyone, if you can play Champions League, you want to play Champions League.’
On the areas of his game he could work on, Wharton added: ‘I think I can improve at everything on the ball, off the ball, communication on the pitch, off the pitch.
‘So the list is endless for that.’
Wharton, who has also been linked with United’s bitter rivals Liverpool, is tied into a contract at Selhurst Park until June 2029.
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