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James Maddison is officially joining Leicester City after weeks of speculation.
As a young boy my dream was always to play in the premier league! Now I have the opportunity to make my dream come true and I can’t wait to get started at this fantastic football club! Delighted to be here and looking forward to meeting all of you @LCFC pic.twitter.com/iKpqZSw4u9
— James Maddison (@Madders10) June 20, 2018
The 21-year-old attacking midfielder reportedly chose City over Southampton after both clubs had bids in the region of £22 million accepted. A number of other clubs were said to be interested including Liverpool, Tottenham, Manchester City, West Ham, Everton, and Fulham.
The signing continues Leicester City’s good streak of early work in this transfer window after the successful signings of Ricardo Pereira and Jonny Evans. The last window saw loads of late business, including one infamous purchase that came 14 seconds too late, so the new approach seems logical.
Maddison could be a suitable replacement for Riyad Mahrez as the Foxes will likely be looking to replace the production of their most creative player. The England under-21 international had a remarkable year that saw him tally 15 goals and 8 assists in 49 appearances. It wasn’t just his end-product that impressed either, as he led the Championship with 124 chances created, and averaged 2.8 key passes per game according to whoscored.com.
#lcfc’s newest signing, @Madders10, has a message for the Blue Army… #WelcomeMaddison pic.twitter.com/eYPcGZXshi
— Leicester City (@LCFC) June 20, 2018
He is said to have chosen Leicester City in part because of his roots in the Midlands as he is from Coventry, where he even started a coaching company.
Maddison is yet another promising young piece in Leicester’s ranks that could form the core of the team in the coming years. With Maddison joining Fousseni Diabaté (22), Wilfred Ndidi (21), Kelechi Iheanacho (21), Demarai Gray (21), Ben Chilwell (21), and Hamza Choudhury (20), the future looks promising.