England’s forgotten Euro 2024 starlet emerges as top Man Utd target after excellent end to last season

Manchester United are reportedly planning a sensational swoop for Crystal Palace breakout star Adam Wharton this summer, according to reports from TeamTalk.

Wharton came through the highly rated Blackburn Rovers academy and made his debut for the Championship side in February 2022 at just 18 years of age. Despite being a teenager at the time, Wharton seamlessly slotted into the Blackburn midfield and was a major part of the team that narrowly missed out on the play-offs under Jon Dahl Tomasson in 2022/23.

This impressive form in the middle of the park continued in the first half of last season for the Riversiders, and in January 2024 he completed an £18m move to the Premier League with Crystal Palace. He was left on the bench for the first game during a 4-1 loss to Brighton but went on to play all 15 of his side’s remaining league fixtures and was a catalyst for the team’s upturn in fortunes under Oliver Glasner as Palace finished in the top half for just the second time in the Premier League era.

Wharton looked immediately at home in the Premier League and after an impressive debut for the Three Lions in a 3-0 win over Bosnia in June, he earned himself a place in Gareth Southgate’s final 26-man squad for Euro 2024 ahead of Liverpool’s Curtis Jones. However, the 20-year-old was forced to sit on the sidelines for all seven tournament matches and failed to get a single minute of action as England finished runners-up to Spain in the final in Berlin.

Despite his lack of action for England, Ten Hag remains an admirer of the youngster and sees him as the ideal long-term replacement for Casemiro, who is expected to depart for Saudi Arabia this summer. The Red Devils had been actively pursuing a move for Joao Neves of Benfica but the youngster’s hefty price tag of £100m could stall the prospect of a move to Old Trafford this summer.

Wharton is due to link up with his Crystal Palace teammates for pre-season in the near future and according to the Sun remains committed to the project at Selhurst Park despite interest from a number of major clubs including Bayern Munich and Real Madrid.

Palace have already sold Michael Olise to Bayern Munich for around £50m this summer and are determined not to lose any more of their prized assets heading into the new campaign. Wharton has five years remaining on his existing contract in South London and is unlikely to leave unless there's a huge offer on the table.

Crystal Palace open the season with an away game against Brentford on Sunday 18 August. They will play to the Red Devils on matchday five which takes place Saturday 21 September.

Wharton impressed in a 4-0 win for the Eagles last time out and Manchester United will be desperate for revenge on their next trip to Selhurst Park.