Rovers have rounded off Friday with their second contract signing of the week by announcing that local prospect and fan favourite, Adam Wharton, has penned a second long-term deal in the space of 15 months!
The new deal, which is set to expire in the summer of 2028, gives Rovers five more years of their young hero to enjoy as he continues to hone his craft with his boyhood club.
Having been at Rovers since the age of six, the talented midfielder, who has had many suitors reportedly circling around him, has now been able to quell any rumours or paper talk by inking the paper and committing his future with his local team, which has come to the delight of the fanbase.
Since his previous contract extension in September 2022, Adam has come along leaps and bounds having earnt more playing time, both in the second tier and in the first-team domestic cups for Rovers as Jon Dahl Tomasson has elevated his game and his craft. This season, Wharton has played in 17 of the 19 possible Championship games, as well as two Carabao Cup games, including 90 minutes at Stamford Bridge in the 2-0 defeat against Chelsea, where the 19-year-old, more than held his own against a £1bn team that included World Cup winning midfielder, Enzo Enzo Fernández as direct competition.
Despite having not netted for himself this season, Wharton has proved a pivotal pivot as part of Rovers’ focus on possession football, with two assists to his name from a relatively deep midfield position, including a sumptuous through ball to Sammie Szmodics for the reigning Championship Player of the Month’s first of two in the eventual 4-2 win against Birmingham City.
Having spent most of last season being slowly bled into the first-team gradually, by the gaffer, this season has seen Adam stake his claim for that starting berth which he has grabbed with both hands to become an integral and indispensable part of Rovers’ make-up. Additionally, not only does this new deal give Wharton the deserved praise, but also reinforces the value of local, academy players making the grade at first-team level, which highlights the great, community work that the Rovers academy have done to help him – and the likes of older brother, Scott and Jake Garrett – into and ready for a first-team environment.
Having agreed his third contract in the space of a fortnight, Rovers’ Director of Football, Gregg Broughton spoke with the club’s media team to reflect on Wharton’s fresh terms:
“Over the last 12 months, Adam has worked so hard to make himself a starting XI player here at Blackburn Rovers.
“Jon (Dahl Tomasson) has talked of Adam’s ‘Champions League quality’ in possession and we believe Adam is the English player with the highest potential outside the Premier League.
“Can we put on record our thanks for the continued support provided by Adam’s family and his representatives, who understand that potential can only be fulfilled with opportunity.
“In addition, these moments shouldn’t pass without recognising the huge amount of brilliant work put in by our Academy staff, past and present, to provide the pathway and development for Adam since he joined the club at the age of six.”
Congratulations, Adam! We look forward to cheering you on as you flourish in Blue and White!
