Adam Wharton’s Future: John Obi Mikel Predicts Manchester United Move

John Obi Mikel has nailed his colours to the mast over Adam Wharton’s future – and he sees the Crystal Palace midfielder in Manchester United red as early as next year.

Wharton, 22, valued at around £60 million by Transfermarkt, stayed put at Selhurst Park during the recent window despite serious noise around his name. A string of top clubs tracked him. No one pulled the trigger.

United were firmly among the admirers heading into the summer. Scouts liked what they saw, the data backed it up, and the conversation reached boardroom level. Then the strategy changed.

INEOS chose to rip up and rebuild Michael Carrick’s midfield instead. Andrey Santos, Carlos Baleba and Youri Tielemans arrived for a combined upfront outlay of £148m, a clear statement that the engine room would be reshaped in one hit rather than patched up over multiple windows.

Against that backdrop, Obi Mikel still sees a different story unfolding.

“I love him! I love Adam Wharton, I'm a big, big fan,” the former Chelsea midfielder said on his podcast. “I think he's going to go places, though, I think next season he will leave Crystal Palace. I think they want to keep him for one more season. I see him going to Manchester United next season.”

It is a bold prediction. Right now, it cuts against the direction United’s hierarchy appear to be heading.

United’s gaze shifts away from Wharton

Inside Old Trafford, Wharton is no longer viewed as a concrete target. The club did their midfield surgery this year. The expectation around INEOS is that the next major operation will be at the back.

They chose not to add a single defender to Carrick’s squad over the last few months, a call that raised eyebrows given the demands of a season that includes a return to Champions League football. One serious injury in the backline and that decision could haunt them.

The risk is obvious. The logic, from INEOS’ perspective, is just as clear: spend big in one department, then swing the spotlight to another.

As things stand, the long-term defensive plan has a name attached to it – Lewis Hall.

United view Hall as the ideal heir to Luke Shaw, who is now 31 and into the final nine months of his contract at Old Trafford. That succession line is pencilled in as a priority for 2027, a slow-burn project rather than a frantic scramble.

So where does that leave Wharton?

For now, he remains Palace’s prized asset, a rising midfielder whose next move will be dictated as much by timing and club strategy as by talent. Obi Mikel is convinced that path leads to Manchester. INEOS, for the moment, are drawing their maps at the other end of the pitch.