‘I’m a fan’: Don Hutchison admits he wanted 26-year-old to sign for Newcastle

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Don Hutchison has praised Tottenham Hotspur for the signing of James Maddison, admitting that he wanted the midfielder to join Newcastle United.

The Magpies have officially missed out on Maddison after his move to Spurs was made official on Wednesday night. The 26-year-old has cost £40million, as Tottenham fended off interest from Eddie Howe’s side.

Despite a longstanding interest that went back to last summer, Newcastle distanced themselves from Maddison in the final stages, giving Tottenham a clear run at the England international.

They have now got their man, while the Magpies are looking for alternatives. Dominik Szoboszlai is the frontrunner at the moment, although he might prefer a move to Liverpool.

As for Maddison, there aren’t too many tears on Tyneside about missing out. However, Hutchison, who is a Toon fan himself, has admitted that he wanted the playmaker to head to St James’ Park.

Hutchison left disappointed as Maddison joins Tottenham

Speaking on ESPN, pundits Steve Nicol and Hutchison have debated Maddison’s move to Tottenham.

The former Liverpool defender was fairly scathing towards him, suggesting that he went missing during the tough times at Leicester, who suffered relegation last season.

Hutchison hit back, and admitted that he wanted Maddison to sign for Newcastle.

“I get Stevie’s point but I’m a fan of Maddison,” he said.

“I would have liked him at Newcastle. I think Spurs are getting a player that they need. When you look at what they’ve got, people like Hojbjerg and Skipp in the middle of the park.”

He would have done well for Newcastle

While there isn’t much disappointment about missing out on Maddison, he would have been a good addition to Howe’s squad.

Nicol’s criticism seems extremely harsh, especially given the fact Maddison still got 10 goals and nine assists as Leicester were relegated from the Premier League. He more than did his bit.

Those numbers are what will have enticed Newcastle, but he will be taking his attacking talents to North London instead.

It has been reported that Newcastle felt he could not play in the same side as Allan Saint-Maximin, which suggests that the Frenchman is going nowhere. If that is the case, he needs to start getting the same kind of numbers that Maddison is capable of – otherwise the Toon recruitment team might regret their decision.