MY ACCOUNT
Leicester’s relegation on the final day of the Premier League season means they are set to lose the majority of their best players this summer.
Midfield talisman James Maddison is one man who appears certain to exit the East Midlands club after another stellar campaign from an individual perspective.
He has just one year remaining on his current deal at the King Power Stadium and any hopes of an extension have surely been extinguished by the dreaded drop to the Championship.
As the opening of the transfer window on June 14 approaches, we take a look at what the future might have in store for the England international.
Leicester livewire
Maddison, 26, was one of the Foxes’ few standout performers in a season the club as a whole will be eager to forget in a hurry.
He bagged 10 goals and nine assists in 30 top-flight appearances, while also leading his team-mates in numerous key metrics.
The Coventry-born maestro created the most chances (69), completed the most take-ons (46), played the most through-balls (five) and produced the most passes in the final third (331) among Dean Smith’s squad.
And of those in the division to have played 1,000 or more minutes, only Kevin De Bruyne, Bruno Fernandes and Kieran Trippier averaged more chances created per 90 than Maddison (2.5).
A mercurial playmaker who is also a prominent goal threat is a bit of a rarity in football and it is why the silky operator will not be short of suitors this summer.
Get a Toon out of him
Both Tottenham and Arsenal have been linked with a move for Maddison — but Newcastle seems to be his most likely destination.
Spurs’ lack of European football and managerial issues make them a less attractive proposition, while playing second fiddle to Martin Odegaard at the Gunners would not be ideal.
And the ex-Norwich man’s skill set is tailor-made for a Magpies team with two gifted strikers in Callum Wilson and Alexander Isak, who scored 28 Premier League goals between them.
On a potential switch to Tyneside, Ian Wright said: “Maddison going to a place like Newcastle, with his energy.
“He’s about those fans and entertainment. You look at him with his talent, and you can see that when you put him in a team with a front-man with great movement.
“The passes that Maddison will find him with, because he’s so talented. I’d love to see him in a team that can transition.
“You can see someone like him, he can lead the transitional part and he can play out in the right team.”
Maddison’s ability to operate in tight spaces and then find team-mates would give Eddie Howe’s side a further boost for their first Champions League campaign since 2002-03.
England hopes
Picking the right club this summer will be pivotal to Maddison’s chances of playing at next summer’s European Championships.
The playmaker was named in Gareth Southgate’s squad for this month’s qualifiers against North Macedonia and Malta, having made his first Three Lions start against Ukraine in March.
But with competition rife in England’s attacking department, regular football in 2023-24 is an absolute must for the Leicester star to remain in the international fold.
Raheem Sterling’s omission from the latest squad following an ill-fated move to Chelsea last summer should serve as a warning.
