Man City are reportedly among the teams interested in signing Leicester City midfielder James Maddison but they face competition from Newcastle United.
Maddison has been one of the Premier League’s standout players over the past couple of seasons. He has grabbed seven goals and four assists in 14 league outings this term.
His contract is due to expire in 2024 and it feels like only a matter of time before he secures himself a move away from Leicester City.
Newcastle were interested in him in the summer and at that time he was valued at around £60m. A deal could not be reached at that stage, but Leicester’s asking price for him will likely have decreased once the summer transfer opens later this year.
The Magpies are expected to try again to sign Maddison, but they will face a fight with Man City, according to The Daily Mail.
They state that City are ‘interested in a move’ for the England international. The Premier League holders ‘hold an interest’ in Jude Bellingham but they have ‘identified’ Maddison as a target with ‘Pep Guardiola wanting more goals from those behind Erling Haaland’.
The report also notes that ‘Leicester are increasingly unlikely to be able to hold on to Maddison in the summer, even if they avoid relegation.’
Maddison is ‘keen to test himself among the elite’ and Leicester are ‘acutely aware’ that they are ‘running out of time’ to sell their prized asset for a sizable fee.
The Daily Mail adds: ‘City firming up initial interest in Maddison – a player Guardiola admires – may be contingent on other factors, including a pursuit of a winger and Phil Foden’s proposed role in the team.
‘City want another forward, although there is only a small pool of players who fit the bill. With 14 goal contributions in Serie A this season, AC Milan’s Rafael Leao is being closely monitored. Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, the Georgian winger at Napoli, has suitors across Europe.
‘Should City secure a winger then Foden’s natural progression would be to move inside behind Haaland, a spot that he has appeared destined to eventually assume.’
A ‘squad shake-up’ is being plotted by Guardiola after it was confirmed that Joao Cancelo has joined Bayern Munich on loan following a reported ‘bust-up’ with the City head coach.
A separate report has suggested that Ilkay Gundogan, Aymeric Laporte, Kyle Walker and Bernardo Silva could also leave Man City in the coming months.
On his move away from City, Cancelo…
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