Alex Scott, Keane Lewis-Potter, Harry Souttar and Joao Pedro all made the step up from the Championship to the Premier League in recent seasons, but have struggled to match the form that made Bournemouth, Brentford, Leicester and Brighton splash the cash for them.
Scott was labelled by Pep Guardiola as an “unbelievable player,” after Bristol City’s FA Cup tie against Manchester City. Lewis-Potter starred in his final season at Hull City, scoring 13 goals. Souttar was one of Australia’s best players in the Qatar World Cup before a £15m move from Stoke to Leicester, while Brighton broke their record transfer fee to sign Pedro
They have only had fleeting moments in their Premier League beginnings, something that can’t be said about Crystal Palace’s most recent Championship addition, Adam Wharton, who has not just settled well since switching Blackburn for south London but was one of Oliver Glasner’s best performers at the end of the season.
Now Wharton has been selected for England’s provisional Euro 2024 squad, showing just what England manager thinks of his progress.
Palace won three games in a row for the first time under the Austrian, before the United clash, and at the start of that streak at Anfield, against a title-pushing Liverpool, Wharton announced himself. It was a performance from the young midfielder who belied his age of just 20 years. Indeed, Wharton was playing in a 4-0 defeat against Huddersfield Town four months prior, but he has taken everything in stride and is a quick learner.
In that 1-0 win, Wharton dealt with the intensity and aggression, and, in what was the biggest game he has played in his career to date, he looked unnerved on the ball, as he started the move that created Eze’s go
They followed that win up with convincing displays against West Ham and Newcastle, where again Wharton controlled the midfield battle against Lucas Paqueta and Bruno Guimaraes in both games, players linked with both Manchester City this season. And he was integral to a seven-game unbeaten streak to end the campaign.
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