Ahead of Crystal Palace facing Manchester United on Monday, it’s emerged from stats that the Eagles have a player better than Kobbie Mainoo.
Ever since his debut for Manchester United, Kobbie Mainoo has been the talk of the town in the Premier League.
The 18-year-old phenomenon has forced his way into the England set-up and made himself one of the first names on Erik ten Hag’s teamsheet.
However, this coming Monday, Crystal Palace will get to see his quality up close and personal.
But the Eagles won’t be outgunned in midfield, as there’s arguably a better player playing at Selhurst Park right now, his stats prove it.
Crystal Palace ace Adam Wharton is higher rated than Kobbie Mainoo this season
For all the talk about Mainoo, Adam Wharton has been better than the teenager since joining Palace from Blackburn in January for £22m.
- READ MORE: How much Crystal Palace paid to sign every 2023/24 first-team squad player in the transfer market
Wharton has gone from strength to strength, dominating some of the league’s sternest midfielders, and being lauded by Ian Wright as “brilliant”.
Now he’s been revealed as the highest-rated U20 player in the league this season, according to SofaScore.
| # | Player name | Rating |
| 1 | Adam Wharton | 7.09 |
| 2 | Alejandro Garnacho | 7.08 |
| 3 | Malo Gusto | 7.04 |
| 4 | Wilson Odobert | 6.94 |
| 5 | Kobbie Mainoo | 6.89 |
| 6 | Lewis Miley | 6.88 |
From this, it’s incredible to see just how impressive Wharton has been among his age group peers.
However is he better than Mainoo? Or are they just very different? Let’s have a look.
Adam Wharton vs Kobbie Mainoo
This season, both have been superb players and despite Wharton being a 0.20 above him in the ratings chart, their displays have been closer in quality.
It’s worth mentioning too that the duo are incredible players but play very different roles in a team, which would make them perfect midfield partners for England in the future.
Here’s how they compare…
| Mainoo | Wharton | |
| Games played | 20 | 13 |
| Goals scored | 2 | 0 |
| Assists provided | 1 | 2 |
| Chances created per 90 | 0.6 | 1.6 |
| Passes completed per 90 | 32.9 | 30.5 |
| Passing accuracy | 85.63 | 81.06 |
| Tackles made per 90 | 2.1 | 3.5 |
| Duels won per 90 | 5.3 | 5.6 |
| Interceptions per 90 | 1.1 | 1.4 |
From comparing the stats, Wharton has quite clearly enjoyed the better season, but there are external factors at play with Wharton thriving under Glasner as Palace go strength to strength.
Meanwhile, United are on the verge of sacking Ten Hag.
Both are excellent, but for now, it seems Wharton just edges it.
