Newcastle United manager Eddie Howe has demonstrated his willingness to offer the youth a platform to impress this season, and could continue the trend by signing Blackburn Rovers' teenage starlet Adam Wharton.
What's the latest on Adam Wharton to Newcastle?
According to the Daily Mail, the 18-year-old Wharton has enjoyed an impressive breakout season with Rovers and has attracted the attention of several top Premier League outfits.
Indeed, Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur are joined by Eddie Howe's Magpies in sending sporting director Dan Ashworth and scout Mick Tait to observe the prodigious talent's progress, with Leicester City and West Ham United also interested.
The report continues to state that the dynamic midfielder has been described as a 'taller Jack Wilshere, who can play and tackle.'
Should Newcastle sign Wharton?
The Toon boast a wealth of firepower following the £300m PIF takeover in 2021, having followed the changing of the ownership guard with sustained exemplary performances on the pitch that navigated away from relegation danger and now, just one season later, have the club in third place with just three matches to play.
Securing world-class firepower is indeed necessary to bolster the club's hopes of maintaining this newfound stature and navigating towards a future speckled with success, but solidifying the foundation of the first team's exploits with a vibrant crop of youth talent is just as important.
And in Wharton, who has made 18 Championship appearances this season, scoring one goal and supplying two assists, an heir to the midfield could be found and nurtured into a phenom fit to lead the Toon engine.
As per Sofascore, the gem has recorded an average rating in the second tier of 6.95, completing 84% of his passes, making 0.7 key passes, 1.7 tackles and 0.8 interceptions per outing, with journalist Josh Bunting hailing him as "brilliant" for his work.
In Wharton's final match of the campaign, the enthralling 4-3 victory over Millwall as both outfits chased, painstakingly unsuccessfully, a place in the play-offs, he scored his maiden league goal and earned an impressive 7.1 match rating, complementing his strike with three interceptions, two tackles and success in three of his four ground duels.
The "ridiculous" teenager – as he was dubbed by Blackburn writer Callum Altimas – ranks among the top 8% of midfielders across Men's Next 8 divisions – preceding the European big five – the top 16% for tackles and the top 11% for blocks per 90, via FBref, illustrating the dynamism of his skill set.
While the 5 foot 9 "star boy" – in the words of writer Matthew Stanger – has been likened to former Arsenal maestro Wilshere, it is coveted Englishman Jude Bellingham who he could emulate as he grows into his skin.
Bellingham was always a precocious footballing talent and is now one of the game's most eminent midfielders, with the Borussia Dortmund star reportedly closing on a move to Real Madrid after intense speculation surrounding his future.
Both Wharton and Bellingham have plied their breakout seasons in the Championship, with the Riversiders ace's aptitude in 'playing and tackling' similar to that of Bellingham, who ranks among the top 2% of midfielders across Europe's big five leagues for goals, the top 7% for shot-creating actions, the top 8% for progressive passes and the top 1% for successful take-ons, as per FBref.
There is a long way to go until the Rovers starlet can truly emulate Bellingham, but at Newcastle, he could yet develop into a truly all-encompassing midfielder of the highest order.