BBC Radio 5 Live pundit Alan Hutton has been left excited by some Tottenham Hotspur transfer news involving Leicester City star James Maddison.
The Lowdown: Paratici working?
Sporting director Fabio Paratici must play a key role in securing the future of Antonio Conte by working behind the scenes to bring in his transfer targets. Over the summer, the Spurs chief backed the manager significantly after club owners ENIC green-lit a £150m equity increase.
The Italian managed to bring in Ivan Perisic, Fraser Forster, Yves Bissouma, Richarlison, Clement Lenglet, Djed Spence and Destiny Udogie whilst also sealing a permanent deal for Cristian Romero.
However, if the Lilywhites are to continue competing with the Premier League’s most elite clubs, further on-field investment could be required to iron out Spurs’ glaring weaknesses – perhaps most glaringly the absence of a star playmaker.
The Latest: Hutton excited by Spurs reports on Maddison…
According to recent reports, the north Londoners are eyeing a move for Foxes attacker Maddison.
[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/tottenham-latest-news-3/” title=”Tottenham latest news!” poster=”” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]
It is also believed the 25-year-old is ‘very keen’ on a move to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, with former Spurs defender Hutton reacting to these reports in an interview.
He explained to Football Insider: “If it comes down to just football reasons, I think someone like Maddison would fit in to the Spurs way. He works hard, he has got that creative spark.
“That is possibly something Tottenham miss in games from that number ten role. He could fit in to the Conte way and it could be something that Maddison could really flourish under.”
The Verdict: Positive news…
As per WhoScored, Maddison is a very effective creator in the final third, currently ranking as Leicester’s best player by average match rating having weighed in with five goals and two assists in just nine league starts.
The Englishman also attempts more shots at goal and completes more key passes per 90 than any Foxes player, whilst drawing the most fouls (WhoScored).
To say that he would flourish under Conte could certainly be an accurate prediction, and Tottenham are arguably lacking someone like him to provide that central creativity.
The fact that Maddison’s 2.3 key passes per game exceeds the 1.9 managed by Harry Kane and Son Heung-min, Spurs’ market leaders in that regard, would suggest as such.
