Tottenham Want to Hijack Liverpool Move to Sign ‘Phenomenal’ £100m Star
Tottenham Hotspur are looking to hijack Liverpool’s move to sign Crystal Palace star Adam Wharton this summer, according to The Sun.
The Lilywhites are keen to add to their midfield options this summer for new manager Thomas Frank, with the England international seen as the top target following deals to sign Mohammed Kudus and the controversial move for Morgan Gibbs-White.
But Liverpool are also keen on a move for the former Blackburn star, and Spurs are keen to hijack the progress they’ve made on a deal by moving ahead of them in the race for his signature.
Tottenham Want to Hijack Liverpool Move for Wharton
Wharton keen to stay at Palace for another season
Wharton, who has been described as ‘phenomenal’, has been targeted by several top clubs across Europe, with Spurs reportedly preparing a £60m offer for the classy midfielder.
However, the England star would prefer to stay at Selhurst Park for another season as he looks to secure regular first-team football ahead of next summer’s World Cup, which has made Liverpool favourites for his signature.
According to a report, the Reds have been eyeing a move for Wharton for months but with so many changes to their squad this summer under Arne Slot they would prefer to make a move happen next summer instead.
| Adam Wharton in Premier League (2024-25) | |
|---|---|
| Appearances: | 20 |
| Goals: | 0 |
| Assists: | 2 |
| Long balls (accurate): | 2.0 (57%) |
| Tackles per game: | 1.7 |
| Balls recovered per game: | 5.1 |
| Clearances: | 1.4 |
| Ground duels won: | 2.9 (49%) |
Tottenham are keen to bring Wharton in too, and want to use that as an opportunity to convince the 21-year-old to make the switch across London this summer instead – hijacking Liverpool’s plans in the process.
Palace don’t want to lose Wharton in this transfer window with the club already expected to lose captain Marc Guehi and star forward Eberechi Eze, and will demand a huge £100m fee for the player as he has four years remaining on his contract while Blackburn are due 15% of any profit they make on the £18m they paid for him.
Tottenham are also looking at deals for Conor Gallagher and Bayern Munich star Joao Palhinha to strengthen the midfield, but Wharton is their top target.
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Tottenham suffer massive Adam Wharton transfer blow
Tottenham Hotspur, assuming they are able to add Morgan Gibbs-White to Mohammed Kudus, should have their attacking options mostly settled heading into the first season of Thomas Frank’s new sporting project in North London – a continuation from what Ange Postecoglou built, which included a Europa League title triumph.
However, Tottenham are at risk of continuing to struggle in the Premier League while getting knocked down in a huge step up in competition quality in the Champions League, simply because they don’t have the right infrastructure in the middle of the park.
Postecoglou’s brazen tactics didn’t necessarily help, but no matter who would have coached Tottenham, it’s unlikely the midfield would have been any less overmatched without real screening and controlling quality.
Frank and Tottenham have been targeting Crystal Palace defensive midfielder Adam Wharton as their dream get at the No. 6 position this summer, but there’s an acknowledgment that Wharton will be very difficult to sign due to his value to Palace, the scarcity of his position, his youth and quality, and the simple fact that Palace always drive a hard bargain for their players (look no further than other Tottenham targets like Marc Guehi and Eberechi Eze).
Not interested in either Tottenham or Liverpool
Now, according to a report from respected journalist Alan Nixon for The Sun, Wharton may be impossible to get entirely, regardless of the rumored transfer fee. That’s because, per Nixon, Wharton is not interested in leaving Crystal Palace at all this summer transfer window despite flattering interest from Tottenham Hotspur and defending Premier League champions Liverpool.
Still just 21 years old despite already establishing himself as one of the elite holding midfielders in the English Premiership, Wharton has three years left on his contract. Not only does he have time to wait for his big move, but Palace also have plenty of time themselves before they are remotely under any pressure to sell the England international.
With Wharton almost certainly off the table this summer, Tottenham will have to wade through a difficult market for legitimate, star-level No. 6 options, and, if anything, the list of possible transfer targets is only dwindling for Spurs. Underrated options who could be worth Tottenham’s time like Richard Rios and Anton Stach are already either officially gone or close to being officially off the table.
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