Jermaine Jenas is hoping the penny drops at Tottenham Hotspur this summer and his old club goes all out for Leicester star James Maddison – amid reports that Maddison is also a target for Newcastle United and plenty of other clubs.
Maddison, 26, has entered the final 18 months of his contract at Leicester. If he is unwilling to sign a new deal at the King Power this summer, then the Foxes will have to cash in to avoid losing him on a free – like with Youri Tielemans.
Football website 90Min report that Newcastle are ‘confident’ of a deal for the England star, who has had a hand in 14 goals in 19 games this season – scoring nine and creating five. The Guardian state that Leicester want a fee of £60m.
But Spurs have been linked in recent months, too. Tottenham icon Jenas is hopeful that given his old side’s inconsistent season and criticism of the board when it comes to the window – that they go all out this summer, and sign Maddison.
“It’s like, are they ever going to get to a window, like this summer and go, ‘You know what? We need James Maddison: go and get him. We need a top goalkeeper, let’s go and compete for one’,” Jenas said, in interview with FourFourTwo.
“That never seems to happen. It’s always half-hearted and I think that’s where the frustration lies. You’re here now, so go: you’re very close but you’re not prepared to take that next step,” Jenas continued, urging his old side to move.
Jenas hoping Tottenham go all out for Leicester star Maddison in summer
What a signing it would be. If Tottenham’s last outing proved anything, a 1-0 defeat to Sheffield United in the FA Cup, it is that Spurs lack any kind of midfield creativity. Even more so, with Rodrigo Bentancur sidelined until November.
They need an attacking midfielder that can drop in as a no.10, perhaps altering Antonio Conte’s rigid 3-4-3 system. Maybe a formation that sees Spurs play with a player in behind Harry Kane and Son Heung-min or Deki Kulusevski.
Spurs have shown they are willing to pay the kind of price necessary to sign a player like that – having splashed the cash on Richarlison last summer, totalling a similar fee to the figure that it will take to sign Maddison. Time will tell.
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