Newcastle United failed to reach an agreement to sign James Maddison in the summer transfer window and now a new update has emerged on the club’s potential move for the player in January.
What’s the latest?
According to 90min, the Magpies are looking into the financial commitment needed to secure a deal for the Leicester City star in January as he is their top priority.
As per the report, the publication understands that Maddison is the Toon’s top target but the club are aware that it won’t be easy to sign the player in the upcoming transfer window due to his £50m price tag but would be willing to wait until the summer if they can’t reach an agreement in the new year.
It’d be a major coup
There is no doubt that Maddison would be a major coup for Newcastle whether they sign him in January or next summer, however, if they could secure a deal in the upcoming transfer window it would be a huge boost for Howe over the second half of the season.
Newcastle are currently third in the Premier League after an impeccable run of form over their first 15 outings, matching league leader Arsenal not only for the least amount of goals conceded in the top-flight but also in losing just one game so far, which is incredibly impressive and something Howe will surely want to emulate over the second half of the season.
As a result, the signing of an incredibly in-form Maddison next month could be just what Newcastle needed to maintain their spot inside the top four, delivering Champions League football at St James’ Park much sooner than expected in the plans of their Saudi owners.
Over 13 league appearances so far, the 26-year-old ace – who was hailed a “super talent” by pundit and commentator Danny Murphy – has scored seven goals, registered four assists and won 52% of his duels, as well as averaging three shots on goal, 2.4 key passes, 58.8 touches and 1.9 tackles per game, proving that Maddison is a huge presence on the pitch for the Foxes.
Maddison’s impressive performances in the Premier League earned him a spot in the England squad who have been competing for the World Cup in Qatar over the last few weeks and despite not making it onto the pitch yet for Gareth Southgate’s side, his selection for the first time since 2019 is a credit to his hard work over the last few months.
With that being said, the powers at St James’ Park will be hoping that they convince Leicester to part ways with their talented player sooner rather than later as he could be a massively valuable asset to Howe over the remainder of their outstanding campaign.