Darren Bent says it’s time James Maddison leaves Leicester City to go to the ‘next level’ and how he could be a target for Tottenham Hotspur, as he told talkSPORT.
The former striker added that Maddison would probably fetch a transfer price of ‘£70 million’ after Chelsea signed Enzo Fernandez for over £100 million during the winter transfer window.
The transfer market is already inflated, but Chelsea’s latest spree, including from the summer, has probably taken prices to more stupid levels.
Regardless of where you play in the league, if you are able to have a strong season, only one, then you could probably fetch a price of £50 million+ without hesitation.
Well, given that Maddison might also have English tax added to his price, then it wouldn’t be a surprise to see the goalscoring midfielder go for a fee close to Fernandez’s British record transfer.
But where should Maddison go? Well, several teams were mentioned to Bent, including Tottenham.
“Yes, I think he would be (a target for the likes of Tottenham),” said Bent. “He has hardly played this season. 15 games and 8 goals. Four assists.
“Last season, 35 games. 12 goals and eight assists. He’s backing it up with numbers. He’s at that point now where he needs to go to the next level. That’s no disrespect to Leicester.
“But where Leicester have been, certainly during the last few seasons, hasn’t been great you have to say. This season, by their standards and the players they have got, it’s been disappointing. I know he’s not really featured.
“I’d love to see James Maddison now go to a Champions League club. I think it will do his international career some good – he’s about to come into his pomp. £70+ million. You look at Enzo Fernandez, I know he’s a World Cup winner. It was £106 million. Leicester could go ‘we want £70 million’.”
MADDISON READY FOR THE TOP
After hitting double figures last season, and that for an indifferent Leicester side, Maddison has taken his game to the next level this term.
Prior to the start of the campaign, he hadn’t earned an England cap for several years, but he just couldn’t stop scoring and Gareth Southgate could no longer ignore him.
That’s why he earned a ticket to the 2022 World Cup in Qatar and he is well on course to earning a ticket for Euro 2024, this time he will be hoping for some much-deserved game time.
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