Newcastle United remain in pole position to sign James Maddison as Eddie Howe's players launch a charm offensive on international duty. The Leicester City man is fully focused on England at present but talks continue behind the scenes over where his immediate future lies.
Newcastle have presented their vision to the player over the last 12 months, while Tottenham have made it clear to Leicester that they would like to acquire the 26-year-old's services before the end of the summer. Maddison has also attracted interest from Manchester City in recent months.
Chronicle Live understands Tottenham recently enquired over whether a joint bid of £50m would be enough to lure both Maddison and Harvey Barnes to north London. Leicester won't have been impressed by a double offer of that nature. Meanwhile, Newcastle are yet to launch an official bid but remain in pole position should the Foxes lower their £50m valuation.
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Spurs' low-ball offer will have done them no favours and the fact Ange Postecoglou's side won't be playing European football next term is a big stumbling block in trying to lure a player like Maddison to the club.
The former Norwich City man got a glimpse of St James' Park at its loudest as the Magpies secured Champions League football at the business end of the season. The attacking midfielder started on the bench in the 0-0 draw as Newcastle got over the line in the race for the top four.
Maddison has since linked up with his fellow countrymen for fixtures against Malta and North Macedonia and has been spending a lot of time with Callum Wilson and Kieran Trippier. Wilson cheekily shared a snap of the pair with the caption: "Newcastle is this way." Maddison shared a snap of his own as the duo played pool during their downtime.
Newcastle know the power of their stars having a quiet word in the ear of potential transfer targets after Nick Pope was persuaded to make the move last summer. This time around there is confidence Maddison will be the next England star to take the plunge.
"It’s a pause and put the blinkers on and focus on the job at hand," Maddison told Channel 4 this week. "It was a tough end to the season but the positive about the games with England after having a little bit of a break between the last game of the Premier League season and now, it was good to refocus on these games, if it was straight away it would have been more difficult. I am fully focused on tonight and raring to go."
