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Leicester City are reportedly set to reject a double £50m bid from Tottenham Hotspur for James Maddison and Harvey Barnes.
Following the Foxes’ relegation from the Premier League, a mass exodus of players from the King Power is expected to materialise in the coming weeks.
Attacking duo Maddison and Barnes will seemingly be two of the first names out of the door, with a multitude of Premier League teams vying for their signatures.
Tottenham boss Ange Postecoglou is believed to have identified Maddison in particular as one of his leading transfer targets for his first window, while Barnes could also bolster the Lilywhites’ attack for the 2023-24 season.
Seeking to capitalise on Leicester’s dire situation, Tottenham apparently came forward with a £50m bid for both men last week, but according to Football Insider, their advances will be rebuffed.
The report states that Spurs’ offer fell “significantly” below Leicester’s valuation for the duo, and the Foxes will soon inform Tottenham that their bids have been turned down.
While Leicester have resigned themselves to losing Maddison and Barnes in the summer window, the Championship outfit are still hoping to garner a respectable fee to let them leave.
Despite briefly struggling with a knee injury, Maddison shone for Leicester with 10 goals and nine assists in 30 Premier League games last term, but his contract only has 12 months left to run.
A separate report has claimed that Leicester are holding out £50m alone to let Maddison leave, in spite of the fact that he could exit the King Power on a free transfer in the summer of 2024.
Tottenham are apparently not willing to bow to the Foxes’ financial demands, which could open the door for Newcastle United or Arsenal to pounce in the coming weeks.
Meanwhile, Barnes bettered Maddison’s goal tally with 13 strikes to his name in the 2022-23 top-flight season, as well as setting up goals in the Premier League, FA Cup and EFL Cup.
The 25-year-old has another two years left to run on his contract with Leicester and is also believed to be on the radar of Newcastle, as well as Aston Villa and West Ham United.
Tottenham have waved goodbye to Lucas Moura on a free transfer, but the Lilywhites confirmed on Saturday evening that they had struck a deal with Juventus for the permanent signing of Dejan Kulusevski.
The Sweden international became a fan favourite during an 18-month loan spell, although Spurs’ obligation to make his deal permanent was voided when they failed to qualify for the 2023-24 Champions League.
Instead of triggering their option to buy Kulusevski, Tottenham negotiated a lower fee of £25.7m to bring the 23-year-old back to North London on a five-year deal.