Harry Wilson celebrates after scoring against Brighton (Getty Images)
According to the Daily Mail, Burnley have opened talks with Liverpool to sign in-demand winger Harry Wilson for a fee of £15million before the summer deadline next month.
As per the report, Wilson has slipped further down the pecking order at Anfield following the arrival of Diogo Jota from Wolves and Liverpool are willing to offload the Welshman as he’s not a part of Jurgen Klopp’s plans moving forward.
Born in Wrexham, Wales, Harry Wilson rose through the youth ranks of Liverpool and impressed for the U-23 side before making his senior debut for the Reds in an FA Cup tie against Plymouth Argyle back in the 2016-17 season.
That remains his only first-team appearance for the Reds to date, with Wilson spending most of his career on loan spells away from Anfield.
The 23-year-old had a brief temporary stint at Crewe Alexandra in League One before going on to enjoy fruitful loan spells at Championship clubs Hull City and Derby County, the latter of which produced 18 goals in 49 appearances and included a march to the playoff finals.
Wilson spent the 2019-20 campaign on loan at Bournemouth, scoring 7 goals in 31 Premier League appearances as the Cherries suffered relegation.
With the deadline fast approaching next month, the Clarets need to get a few deals over the line as a lack of transfer activity could prove detrimental to their hopes of consolidating on a 10th-place finish in the Premier League last season.
The Lancashire outfit only managed 43 goals in 38 league games last term despite Chris Wood, Jay Rodriguez, and Ashley Barnes sharing 28 goals among them. Those figures clearly epitomise the need to bring in some attacking reinforcements, considering that Burnley lacked any significant goal contribution from their other attackers.
The Clarets currently have Dwight McNeil, Johann Berg Gudmundsson and Robbie Brady as their specialist wide attacking options, with the latter two currently in the treatment room. Brady is expected to return to action very soon but it goes without saying that Sean Dyche needs to bring in at least another winger to ensure healthy competition for places.
Harry Wilson, to that end, ticks plenty of boxes to come through the door at Turf Moor as just the ideal addition to Burnley’s attack. The left-footed Welsh international predominantly excels as a right-winger but is also versatile enough to play out wide on the other flank.
The 23-year-old has already proven his mettle in the Championship and showed last season during his loan spell at Bournemouth that he’s more than capable of delivering the goods in the top-flight when provided with regular game time.
The Anfield graduate will definitely add more depth and quality to Burnley’s ailing attack while his immaculate set-piece ability (remember his stunning free-kick against Man City last season) comes as a major bonus as well.
Harry Wilson still has his best years ahead of him, so Burnley shouldn’t hesitate to take a punt on the Welsh international. The Clarets need more attacking firepower to aim for greater glory and the Liverpool man could be an excellent investment for the club, not only for the present but also for several years moving forward.