Tottenham Hotspur are the club advancing most in the race to sign Leicester City midfielder James Maddison.
Maddison is a player that has been linked to United. It’s no secret that Erik ten Hag is looking for midfield additions ahead of next summer.
The United boss has made Mason Mount his top transfer target, but a deal on that front has stalled after Chelsea rejected United’s latest bid on Friday.
A month ago, The Peoples Person covered a report from The Telegraph which said that Maddison is wanted by United.
The Telegraph indicated that the Foxes decided a while ago to offload Maddison but their relegation from the Premier League all but confirmed their intention to sell the England international.
Alongside United, it was detailed that Tottenham and Newcastle are also keen on Maddison.
The Telegraph now state that Tottenham remain the strongest candidates to secure the 26-year-old’s services.
Following Newcastle’s signing of Sandro Tonali, the Magpies have cooled their interest in Maddison, and with United seemingly nowhere to be seen in negotiations, Tottenham now appear to have a free run at the Leicester man.
“Tottenham Hotspur want to thrash out a deal with Leicester City for James Maddison this week and are set to submit their opening offer for the England international,” The Telegraph report.
“Maddison is a priority target for new head coach Ange Postecoglou and Tottenham are now pushing hard to agree a fee with relegated Leicester in the next few days. Leicester are demanding up to £60 million for the attacking midfielder, who was part of England’s squad for this month’s European Championship qualifiers.
“Tottenham are prepared to pay an initial £40 million and want to strike a compromise which will include add-ons and further instalments.”
This suggests that United are no longer pursuing Maddison and the Red Devils are prioritizing other transfer targets.
It seems like Ten Hag is targeting a different profile to Maddison, who scored 10 goals and registered nine assists last season for Leicester.