Tottenham have completed the £40million signing of James Maddison from Leicester City. The England international has penned a long-term deal until 2028 in north London.
Always expected to be on the move this summer with his Leicester contract running out in 12 months' time and the Foxes dropping down to the Championship, Spurs were in a battle with Newcastle United for the 26-year-old's signature. Despite the Magpies having Champions League football to offer the player following their top-four finish, Maddison has elected to seal a move to Tottenham rather than heading to the north east.
Spurs chairman Daniel Levy has been able to pull off quite the deal for the attacking midfielder amid previous reports that the Foxes would be looking to bring in £60m for Maddison. Levy has instead struck a £40million deal with Leicester, but Harry Winks' £10million move in the opposite direction in a separate deal effectively means the England ace is costing Spurs £30million.
Wowing in his five seasons at the King Power Stadium after chipping in with 55 goals and 41 assists in 203 appearances, the arrival of Maddison will gives Ange Postecoglou and Tottenham a huge boost in the final third. The new arrival will be expected to excel in the Australian's system as he will line up in one of the two No.8 roles in the Tottenham midfield.
Set to be given licence to push upfield regularly and offer support in attack, Maddison could quite easily surpass his numbers of ten goals and nine assists from last season with Spurs set to play a very attacking game under Postecoglou.
Having four friendlies on the agenda this summer as they head off on their pre-season tour before taking on Shakhtar Donetsk in a home match on Sunday, August 6, Maddison's first outing in a Tottenham shirt could potentially come against West Ham in Perth on Tuesday, July 18. Following the game against the Hammers, Maddison will come face-to-face with his former club when Tottenham take on Leicester in Bangkok five days later.
The attacking midfielder becomes Spurs' third signing of the summer after Dejan Kulusevski joined on a permanent deal and goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario made the move from Italian side Empoli.
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