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Two major Crystal Palace transfer stories have emerged ahead of the club’s Premier League clash with Sunderland this weekend, involving striker Jean-Philippe Mateta and midfielder Adam Wharton.
According to Teamtalk, Palace forward Mateta, 28, has no interest in a move to Leeds United, despite reported Championship interest. However, the Frenchman is said to be tempted by Aston Villa, who are assessing striking reinforcements ahead of the January transfer window.
Mateta first joined Crystal Palace on an 18-month loan from Mainz in January 2021, with the Eagles paying a reported €3million fee and securing an option to make the move permanent for €15million. He scored his first Palace goal in style, netting a superb backheel flick in a 2-1 win over Brighton in February 2021, before completing a permanent switch to Selhurst Park on 31 January 2022. Since then, the striker has cemented himself as a regular at the club.
Alongside Mateta’s future, the second major talking point surrounds Adam Wharton, with Liverpool and Newcastle United the latest clubs to join the race for the highly rated 21-year-old midfielder. Chelsea and Manchester United are also tracking the England international closely.
Wharton joined Palace from Blackburn Rovers in February 2024 for an initial £18million fee, rising to a potential £22million. He made an instant impact, starting 15 consecutive Premier League games in the second half of the 2023-24 season and quickly establishing himself as a key figure in Palace’s midfield.
Despite suffering a groin injury that required surgery in October 2024 and ruled him out for three months, Wharton returned strongly and capped off an incredible campaign by starting the FA Cup final in May 2025, helping Palace defeat Manchester City 1-0 to win the first major trophy in the club’s history.
The developments around Mateta and Wharton come as Sunderland prepare to travel to Selhurst Park this weekend. Régis Le Bris’ side head into the fixture on the back of six points from their opening three matches, with home wins over West Ham and Brentford balanced by an away defeat at Burnley.
Régis Le Bris on Sunderland’s chances of survival
Le Bris says he is “really positive” about the club’s Premier League survival chances after an ambitious summer that saw the Black Cats spend over £150million on new signings, including Granit Xhaka.
The Frenchman has overseen an encouraging start to the season, which has seen his side win two of their first three matches – beating West Ham and Brentford in front of more than 45,000 fans at the Stadium of Light – while suffering a 2-0 defeat away to Burnley. They now face a tough test on the road against Crystal Palace next weekend.
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“I’m really positive, really positive because one of the main challenges when you get promoted like that is to strengthen the squad, and it’s not an easy task because the investment, the way you work together to recruit so many new players, is a massive challenge, and I think so far we are really good,” Le Bris said.
“I’m thinking about the owner, the sporting direction, the recruitment structure and everyone who was involved in that process. I think it’s really impressive. After that, obviously, you have to face new challenges and to put into practice the quality of the squad, and it’s a process. At the minute, I’m happy. After that, we’ll see throughout the season.”
Sunderland invested heavily during the summer transfer window to reshape the squad, with more than £150million spent to give Le Bris the tools to compete in the top flight. Among the standout arrivals was Switzerland international Granit Xhaka, who joined from Bayer Leverkusen in a deal worth around £17.5million.
Asked if he could have imagined such backing when he took charge, Le Bris admitted: “I don’t know. It’s a good question. I’m happy, I repeat, I’m happy with the process, the energy of the club, the ambition, the desire to seize this opportunity. We know that to grow as a club in this league, it’s a tough challenge. It’s not linear, so we don’t know what will happen in the future. But right now, at the minute, we can feel that we are well-organised and ambitious.”
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