Clearly, there remains a lot to fight for during the rest of the season for Newcastle United.
Two wins on the spin heading into the international break has given Eddie Howe’s side a new lease of life in a Champions League challenge that had appeared to have stalled last month.
Indeed, these are heady days for Newcastle. To have something to fight for that isn’t Premier League survival this late into a season has been a rarity and to say it is a welcome change would be quite the understatement.
Still, and while not to get too carried away, another mouth-watering facet of this new era is the thought of constant improvement.
Heading into every transfer window, fans can at least feel confident of the club making some big signings. If this is what the present looks like, just imagine how good it’ll look in the future.
Leicester could have to sell two Newcastle targets this summer
That brings us to James Maddison.
In Sven Botman and Antony Gordon, Newcastle have shown a willingness to wait on potential recruits and perhaps the same could be said of Maddison.
The subject of bids last summer, the £60m-rated England international has again been linked with a move to St James’ Park and, this summer, Leicester will be in a worse position.
Maddison will only have a year left on his contract at that point and it does not stop there.
According to The Athletic, the Foxes will have to “sell an asset or two” this summer in order to fund a rebuild at the King Power Stadium. If they are relegated, it is said to be “certain” that both will depart.
That could also include a certain Harvey Barnes, another player to have been linked with Newcastle.
Maddison surely the priority over Barnes
Given the extent to which Newcastle went for Maddison last summer, it seems reasonable to assume he would be the priority over Barnes.
While not to suggest the latter would be a bad signing by any means, Gordon’s arrival has at least strengthened Howe’s options out wide.
The Newcastle boss, however, lacks goals from central midfield – a position Maddison has played far more often than his teammate.
Of the two, Maddison must be the priority.