Newcastle United are reportedly leading the chase to sign Leicester City’s James Maddison ahead of Tottenham Hotspur.
According to Sky Sports, Tottenham and Newcastle United are reportedly embroiled in a battle to sign Leicester City and England star James Maddison, with the Magpies believed to be in pole position for his signature this summer.
After suffering relegation, the Foxes were always going to be vulnerable to losing their star players, with Maddison certainly falling into that category after another impressive Premier League campaign in which he scored ten goals and assisted nine more in 30 league outings for the Foxes, despite them finishing in 18th place in the table.
The 26-year-old is also entering the final year of his Leicester City contract. So Maddison’s summer departure looks inevitable. Leicester are willing to listen to offers for the playmaker, with figures ranging between £45 million and £55 million previously bandied about. Several teams have so far been linked with a move for the two-capped England international.
Arsenal, Aston Villa, and Spurs have all been cropping up in the headlines, with Newcastle United keeping tabs on his situation, too. However, in the latest update, Sky Sports has revealed that it is the Magpies who are the front-runners in the race to sign the Leicester playmaker, with the 26-year-old having been on their radar for the past six months.
The Magpies have identified midfield strengthening as a key summer priority to further bolster the team after their qualification to the Champions League. And they view Maddison as someone who could excel in a number of right-sided midfield/attacking roles thanks to his versatility and creative prowess.
This comes as a massive setback to Tottenham’s pursuit of the Leicester City star. Tottenham have been showing a concrete interest in luring him to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and are reported to have entered into negotiations with the Foxes to sign the former Norwich City midfielder after claims that Spurs’ new boss Ange Postecoglou has given his seal of approval to the purchase of the midfielder.
However, Spurs chances of signing him look fairly slim, and that is because Newcastle have already put in the groundwork, having had multiple Maddison bids rejected back in January.
Not only that, Newcastle are a much more stable proposition these days owing to their tremendous development under Howe last season, and the fact that St. James’ Park will offer him UEFA Champions League football next season appears to be the key factor in making the North East a more preferable destination.
While Spurs are not completely out of the picture and could still lure Maddison by offering lucrative wages, which Newcastle are unable to do at this stage of their project, the Magpies have leaped ahead of the North London club and are now the favourites to sign the attacking midfielder.
It is going to be interesting to see whether Newcastle eventually manage to sign Maddison and what impact this move will have on their ongoing pursuit of RB Leipzig’s Dominic Szoboszlai.
