Newcastle United are currently the "frontrunners" in the chase to bring Leicester City midfielder James Maddison back to the Premier League, according to Sky Sports reporter Lyall Thomas.
Is James Maddison leaving Leicester?
The Foxes playmaker will be out of contract at the end of next season so Dean Smith’s side are likely to cash in during the upcoming window in order to raise funds following relegation, and after establishing himself as their overall top-performing player with a WhoScored match rating of 7.24, he isn’t short of potential suitors.
The Magpies reportedly had two offers worth up to £50m for the 26-year-old rejected last summer as a result of it not meeting the Midlands outfit’s £60m price tag, but that hasn’t stopped Eddie Howe from wanting to take another bite of the cherry.
Football Insider have reported that PIF are already laying the groundwork on a deal for the England international and are preparing to make an official approach, and whilst they are set to face competition from Tottenham Hotspur, the former are the ones at this stage in pole position.
Are Newcastle signing Maddison?
Taking to Twitter, Thomas revealed that Newcastle are the club currently leading the chase to sign Maddison ahead of the 2023/24 campaign. He wrote:
"Newcastle are currently thought to be the frontrunners in race for Leicester and England midfielder James Maddison – and can offer him Champions League football – but Tottenham are also keen and could come in."
Newcastle are clearly serious about landing Maddison to still be pursuing him 12 months on from their first attempt, and it’s no surprise considering that members of the media dubbed him a midfield “magician”, so whilst he won’t come cheap, he’s definitely a player worth cashing out on to bring him to St. James’ Park.
The World Cup participant clocked up 19 goal contributions (ten goals and nine assists) in 30 Premier League appearances last season and was recognised for his performances by receiving three man-of-the-match awards, and he was also a major threat even when the ball didn’t hit the back of the net.
The Coventry-born talent recorded 138 shot-creating actions and 123 whipped crosses over the course of the previous term, which was more than any of his teammates, via FBRef, not to mention that he was also strong at set pieces being the joint second-highest free-kick scorer in the division behind Southampton’s James Ward-Prowse.
Finally, Maddison shares the same agent, CAA Base Ltd, as Kieran Trippier and Matty Longstaff, so this existing connection that his representative will already have to the club could give them a small additional advantage in the race to secure his services over the summer.