Tottenham are lining up a move for Leicester City playmaker James Maddison after trailing him for six years, according to the Times.
The newspaper claim Spurs are finally ready to make a concerted bid to land the 22-year-old after baulking at the asking price for him during his Coventry City and Norwich City days.
The Times report it may take £44million for Tottenham to land the playmaker this summer, double what Leicester paid last summer, but they are watching him closely with a view to replacing Christian Eriksen.
OPINION
Is Maddison able to follow in Eriksen’s footsteps? Not really. Hardly any players in football are capable of stepping into the shoes of the great Dane, who is a never-ending source of creativity and technical excellence in a Lilywhite shirt. That said, it would cost Spurs a transfer fee they just can’t afford to properly replace Eriksen, one of the outstanding playmakers not just in the Premier League, but in the world game. Maddison has made a good impression in his first season at Leicester, scoring five goals and assisting four more from 23 league matches. He has been a mainstay of the starting XI and provided evidence that he has what it takes to play for a top-six club regularly competing in the Champions League. Certainly, Maddison doesn’t yet have Eriksen’s ability to produce something out of nothing, or consistently hurt opponents. But he is 22, a fine player and one with the potential to improve. For a club like Spurs operating outside the top bracket of transfers, Maddison could be as good as they can get.