Tottenham backed to battle Man City for England midfielder this summer

Tottenham Hotspur could be set for a transfer battle with Manchester City for a young England international, whose stock is continuing to rise in light of his outstanding displays this season.

No midfielder in the Premier League has had as dramatic a rise over the last 12 months as Adam Wharton, who has taken the English top-flight by storm since arriving at Crystal Palace from Blackburn Rovers in January of last year.

The 21-year-old has had an injury-hit campaign, but he has carried on from where he left off on his return to the side, and unsurprisingly, a few Premier League clubs are now thought to be watching the youngster with keen interest.

One of those is Tottenham, with reports over recent weeks claiming that Spurs are plotting a move for Wharton in the summer, but a new update has explained why the Lilywhites’ pursuit of the player has just got a lot harder.

Man City ready to battle Tottenham for Adam Wharton

Former Blackburn and Man Utd chief scout Mick Brown, who remains well connected with those who work in the game, has confirmed that Tottenham are one of two clubs showing a keen interest in the Palace man.

However, unfortunately for Spurs, he explained that Premier League champions, Manchester City, are the other club who are keeping a close eye on the midfielder.

When asked about Adam Wharton’s future, Brown told Football Insider: “I hear Man City and Tottenham have been keeping a close eye on him.

I think both of them could look to sign him in the summer if their scouts decide he’s good enough now to make that step up. For me, I had concerns about him when he joined Palace from Blackburn.

“I know his qualities and what he can do, but I wasn’t completely convinced about how he could deal with the pace of a game when it’s going against him.

“I’ll give him his due, he’s improved since he’s been at Palace and he’s impressed a lot of people. It seems Thomas Tuchel is a fan as well, he’s been watching him at Palace in recent weeks.”

Other reports indicate that although the North London club held an interest earlier this season, Adam Wharton is not a realistic option for Tottenham this summer.

Another stumbling block in Spurs’ Wharton pursuit

It is not just competition from Man City that will complicate Spurs’ pursuit of Wharton, but also Palace’s stance.

Brown explains that Oliver Glasner’s men will fight to keep their best young talent at the club, asserting that it would take a monster offer to prise the England international away from South London.

The former Man Utd scout added: “But from Crystal Palace’s point of view, they don’t want to let him go. If you look at their side – they’ve got Dean Henderson, Marc Guehi, Adam Wharton and Jean-Philippe Mateta as the real spine of that team.

“Building around that you’ve got players like Eze, Sarr, Lacroix and others. Guehi looks like he will be leaving in the summer, and they don’t want to lose too many players from that spine because then it starts to become a problem when you’ve got to replace them.

“So as far as Wharton’s move goes, I think it would take a huge fee for Palace to accept it.”

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