We are pretty sure you’ve seen the stats by now. Leicester City’s numbers with and without James Maddison.
This season, their win rate with Maddison for Premier League fixtures stands at 38 per cent. Without him, those numbers plummet to 13 per cent. 1.9 goals per game with him compared to 0.8 without. 1.3 points per game to 0.5.
If Richard Dawkins was a Leicester fan, even he would be tempted to put his hands together and ask the big man upstairs for a favour as Maddison faces a race against time to be fit for this weekend’s crunch clash with fellow strugglers Southampton.
“James should hopefully be fine,” a cautious Brendan Rodgers said at his Thursday press conference. “Fingers crossed he gets through the rest of the week okay.
“He’s a very important player for us. A fantastic player.”
Short-term fears aside, those lingering long-term doubts about Maddison’s future at the King Power Stadium are enough to keep even the most optimistic Leicester supporter up at night. Especially with those statistics bouncing around the brain; branded into Foxes thoughts.
Newcastle United ‘love’ the England international, Fabrizio Romano tells his House of Champions podcast; convinced that the Magpies will make a concerted effort to sign their number one midfield target this summer regardless of Maddison’s hefty £60 million price-tag.
Newcastle United ‘love’ Leicester City’s James Maddison
Leicester’s miserable form in Maddison’s absence mean a whole campaign without the former Norwich City talisman doesn’t really bare thinking of. Reports that Newcastle are also hot on the heels of Celta Vigo’s Gabri Veiga, however, should give Rodgers some hope that the Magpies may be convinced to shift their focus from Maddison to a younger, more affordable option (AS).
Veiga, ever-improving and fresh from a first ever Spain call-up, is six years Maddison’s senior. With a £35 million release clause in his contract, he would also cost around half the fee Leicester want for their number ten.
Much of the attributes that have made Maddison such an integral figure at the King Power, meanwhile, can also be seen in Veiga. That fearsome long-range shooting. Those well-timed penalty area bursts. The ability to manipulate the ball in tight spaces, and create chances as well as take them.
No midfielder in La Liga has more goals than Veiga’s eight this term. Maddison, by the way of contrast, has nine.
£60m Maddison or £35m Gabri Veiga?
“Gabri Veiga is obviously a talent that’s getting better and better. He is going to be hard for Celta to keep,” Spanish football expert Terry Gibson says on El Tel and Jon’s La Liga Weekly podcast.
“He is an attacking midfielder, scores goals. A good player. If you are on top, you’ve got the ball and you’re attacking, he’s a massive threat.
“He has clearly come to the attention of other big clubs around Europe because he’s a really talented player. There are a lot of really good young players in La Liga, and he is one of the best.”
Newcastle may have the backing of Saudi Arabian billions but even they are not immune to Financial Fair Play fears. And, given his age and his re-sale potential, Veiga’s £35 million release clause certainly means he represents better value for money than James Maddison.
Leicester will be desperate to see Maddison make his return against Southampton. They will be even more desperate to see him stay for 2023/24.
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