Tottenham Hotspur hold an admiration for Leicester City star James Maddison, according to reliable CBS Sports reporter Ben Jacobs.

The Lowdown

According to the Evening Standard, the attacking midfielder has entered fresh contract talks with the Foxes, with two years left on his current deal at the King Power Stadium.

Tottenham have been touted with interest in the 25-year-old this summer, but it was Newcastle United who made the first move. The Tyneside outfit have had two bids rejected for Maddison – the second of which totalled a staggering £50m (£45m plus £5m in add-ons).

The Latest

Jacobs believes that Maddison could be willing to wait for Spurs to come in for him later down the line, rather than making a premature move to Newcastle this summer.

Speaking with GiveMeSport, the CBS journalist claimed: “Even though Newcastle is a really exciting project and could escalate very quickly, and they’ve made a relatively positive start to the season with a win and a draw, it’s not European football now.

“I think that Maddison sees himself in the next year or two, playing regular European football. That might be Newcastle, so there’s an element of persuasion there of joining the project from the ground up and help us get there.

“But there’s a sort of vague admiration from Spurs. They’ve not done anything with it, but I think it’s that type of club, if they come in for Maddison in a future window that may make him wait.”

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The Verdict

Judging by his underlying statistics, Maddison could be a brilliant prospective addition to Antonio Conte’s squad, given his attacking flair.

As per FBRef, compared with positional peers across Europe's top five leagues over the past year, the Leicester star ranks in the 91st percentile for non-penalty goals, the 88th percentile for assists and the 85th percentile for total shots, all of which illustrate his aptitude in the final third.

Therefore, having previously been dubbed a ‘special talent’ by The Times’ Henry Winter, a Premier League-proven Maddison (136 top-flight appearances) would certainly add quality and depth to Spurs’ squad, so managing director Fabio Paratici should consider making a move for him in the near future.