Manchester United have received a major boost in their pursuit of midfield target Adam Wharton, as Crystal Palace have resigned themselves to losing players next summer.
While it remains unclear whether a signing will be made during the January transfer window or in the summer, Manchester United are planning major midfield reinforcements in 2026.
After Rúben Amorim missed out on the club’s major target, Carlos Baleba, last summer, the club are expected to re-ignite their interest in the Brighton & Hove Albion midfielder next summer.
More recently, however, Crystal Palace’s Adam Wharton and Elliot Anderson have emerged as targets, with the pair impressing in this season’s Premier League campaign.
With the threat of relegation a real possibility, Wolverhampton Wanderers’ Joao Gomes has emerged as a potential move for the January window, as the West Midlands side could cash in on their star player before his price tag plummets should they get relegated.
Crystal Palace chairman admits they will lose key players
In an interview with The Athletic, Crystal Palace’s chairman, Steve Parish, admitted that the club are preparing to lose key players at the end of this season.
“We’ve got one eye on players who we might have to replace in summer,” Parish admitted. “We’re not going to throw it all on red and have a massive problem. Unless you want to be in a situation where you’re constantly putting in money every year, there’s a cash limit to what you can spend.
“You can’t spend money you don’t have. You have to have some guardrails as a club, or you’ll build up big problems down the track.
“Everyone saw where prices went in the summer; it’s a difficult landscape. There wasn’t the right thing available at the right time when the finances were in place. There’s no point in doing something for the sake of it.
“How are you going to get someone to come and tell them they are No.1 in Ebs’ [Eze] position if you still have him. The one where we didn’t, with Marc [Guehi], we kept him.
“You can’t always make happen what you want to. We are where we are in the pecking order; you could ask why other clubs make bids for our players two weeks before the end of the window. I don’t know why they did that.”
What Wharton’s representative has said about a potential transfer
A recent report stated that, although Wharton would favour a move to United, he won’t join The Reds if they have no European football to offer.
This statement was echoed by the 21-year-old’s representative when speaking to talkSPORT about the midfielder’s ambitions.
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“When he was at Blackburn, we sat down and spoke about shooting for the stars and playing for England.”
“So how do you get there? Personally, I think to play for England, you have to play Champions League, to play in the Champions League, you have got to play for one of the top teams in one of the top leagues.
“That jump to a Champions League team, I think you can get lost. The plan below that was to play for a Premier League team. We have got a plan. He is 21. I have to check myself to remember that every now and then. It doesn’t have to be achieved yesterday, today or this moment.
“He has got his in-game, in-season targets and goals. He has got to do his bit, and the rest will look after itself in a very structured, calm way to ultimately add value and maximise his ability.”
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