Newcastle United

Newcastle United

Premier League • England

James Maddison: Newcastle told price needed to make Leicester ‘cash in’ on playmaker

Leicester ace James Maddison

Leicester City have reportedly told Newcastle United how much they will have to part with to sign James Maddison this summer.

The attacking midfielder is thought to be on Tottenham’s radar. And Fabrizio Romano states his agent has an ‘excellent’ relationship with Spurs officials.

But it is Newcastle who have made the first move in aiming to prize Maddison away from the King Power.

On Friday, they sent Leicester a £40million bid for the Englishman, according to the Daily Telegraph and other sources.

A transfer for that amount would see Newcastle equal their record purchase. It is currently the £40m they spent on Joelinton in July 2019.

However, Leicester have no plans to sell Maddison at that price. Football Insider instead reveal what Newcastle will have to do to land him.

Their report claims Leicester have given Maddison a £60m price tag. If Eddie Howe’s side match this, then the Foxes will apparently ‘cash in’.

Leicester would be able to make a big profit on the playmaker, who has won one cap for England so far. He swapped Norwich for Leicester in a £25m deal four years ago.

James Maddison a ‘top target’ for Newcastle

Football Insider claim Maddison to be a ‘top target’ for Howe ahead of the new campaign. The English manager can already rely on on Joelinton, Jonjo Shelvey and Bruno Guimaraes in a midfield three.

Further forward, the likes of Miguel Almiron and Allan Saint-Maximin can operate in and around the strikers. But clearly Howe wants more quality adding to his attack and sees Maddison as a great solution.

It’s no surprise Leicester have given Maddison such a big price tag. He was in great form last season, notching 18 goals and 12 assists in all competitions. That helped Brendan Rodgers’ side finish eighth in the Premier League and reach the Europa Conference League semis.

He is effectively in his prime and will be targeting plenty more goals during the new campaign. This explains why Leicester don’t want to let him go.

It will be interesting to see if Maddison attempts to push through an exit, like Marc Cucurella is aiming for at Brighton.

Maddison, 25, will have to do without European football next term due to Leicester’s eighth-placed finish in the Prem. Newcastle aren’t in any European competitions either, although they want to rival Leicester for such qualifying positions.

World Cup to impact transfer decision

The World Cup will also be a big factor in Maddison’s decision-making. He is desperate to make Gareth Southgate’s England squad for the tournament in Qatar.

This website has previously mentioned how joining Tottenham could be a risk. Antonio Conte already has strong options in attack and this could see Maddison end up warming the bench, jeopardising his World Cup chances.

Remaining at Leicester, in his comfort zone, could see Maddison thrive and get Southgate’s attention. But if Newcastle have a great season and Maddison is an integral part of that, then this would also stand him in good stead for an international call-up.

It remains to be seen how James Maddison responds to the interest. Ultimately, though, a transfer is in Newcastle’s hands. If they fail to match Leicester’s valuation, then the star will be going nowhere.

Meanwhile, Newcastle are reportedly in dialogue with Chelsea over the signing of an international winger.