Palace can repeat Wharton masterclass by signing 20m "wonderkid"
Palace can repeat Wharton masterclass by signing 20m "wonderkid"
It's been a roller coaster five months or so for the Crystal Palace faithful following the appointment of Oliver Glasner last season.
The Austrian has thoroughly altered the club's direction and turned them into one of the most attractive projects in the Premier League, and while they're set to lose stars like Michael Olise this summer, you can be sure they'll replace them.
In fact, the latest star touted for a move to Selhurst Park could see Steve Parish and Co repeat the masterclass trick that saw them recruit Adam Wharton in the winter.
Crystal Palace transfer news
According to transfers expert Fabrizio Romano, Palace are incredibly interested in signing Sunderland's exciting prospect Jobe Bellingham this summer.
The Italian claims that the young Englishman is one of Glasner's dream signings and that they are just waiting for the player's green light before making an offer to the Black Cats.
However, it won't be a cheap deal to complete for the Eagles, as Ed Aarrons from the Guardian claimed earlier this week that the Championship side are holding out for offers in excess of £20m.
It would represent a significant investment in a somewhat unproven youngster by the club, but considering the last time they did that, they picked up Wharton, it might be worth the risk.
Palace could repeat their Wharton trick
If there is any trepidation from the board or fans about paying such a substantial fee for a young English midfielder from the Championship, then they only need to cast their minds back to the winter window when they paid £22m to sign Wharton from Blackburn Rovers who had just 51 senior appearances under his belt.
Since then, the 20-year-old has played 16 games for the South Londoners, racked up three assists, made his England debut and is now in Germany as a member of Gareth Southgate's Euros squad - even if he isn't getting as much game time as he should.
It would be hard to describe the transfer as anything other than an overwhelming success, and while it would be wholly unfair to expect Bellingham to quite match that trajectory, his performances in the second tier are undoubtedly promising.
In 45 Championship matches last season, the Stourbridge "wonderkid", as dubbed by U23 scout Antonio Mango, scored seven goals and provided one assist, which is genuinely impressive for an 18-year-old midfielder in his first full campaign of senior football.
Moreover, FBref, which compares players in similar positions across the next best 14 competitions, has placed the young dynamo in the top 5% of midfielders for non-penalty expected goals, the top 22% for actual non-penalty goals and touches in the opposition's penalty area, the top 12% for progressive passes received and the top 14% for non-penalty expected goals plus assists, all per 90.
Ultimately, signing unproven youngsters from the Championship will always be a risk, but based on Bellingham's performances last season, it looks like one worth taking for Palace, especially if they end up with another Wharton situation.
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