Tottenham Hotspur are in the market for attacking midfield recruits after James Maddison’s severe injury and are hoping to strike a deal with Manchester City for James McAtee, while a second Etihad star has been shortlisted, too.
Maddison will miss the majority of the new campaign after tearing his ACL during the 1-1 draw with Newcastle United in pre-season. He will have to undergo surgery to correct the issue, with manager Thomas Frank confirming it is the same knee that ruled Maddison out of the Europa League final win over Manchester United in May.
Tottenham were already planning to bolster the No 10 position even before Maddison’s injury, as they activated Morgan Gibbs-White’s £60million exit clause at Nottingham Forest earlier in the summer window.
However, Forest accused Spurs of making an illegal approach and Gibbs-White subsequently agreed a new deal at the City Ground.
Spurs now have even greater need for a new playmaker to join and TBR report that they are ready to ‘accelerate’ their efforts for McAtee.
The England U21 ace has been on Spurs’ radar since January and they will now ‘ramp up’ talks to bring him to north London.
McAtee is a ‘leading candidate’ to replace Maddison and Spurs have been informed it will take a £40m bid to prise him away from City.
Pep Guardiola rates McAtee highly but knows the 22-year-old needs to leave so he can play regularly and continue his development.
Forest, also in the market for a new No 10 to help out Gibbs-White, recently had a £25m bid for McAtee rejected by City.
It emerged on July 30 that Spurs are looking to hijack Forest’s move and the transfer race is now heating up.
Clubs both in the Premier League and across Europe are keen on McAtee, knowing he has fantastic potential and the fact that graduates from the City academy usually become top-class.
Borussia Dortmund, Atalanta, Bayer Leverkusen, RB Leipzig and Eintracht Frankfurt are just some of the other clubs interested in McAtee.
He was briefly linked with a shock move to City’s rivals Manchester United but that appears unlikely.
Spurs have already signed Mohammed Kudus from West Ham United this summer but need another player to add creative flair, especially after Maddison’s injury and Son Heung-min’s emotional departure.
McAtee is a concrete target to replace Maddison, while his City team-mate Jack Grealish has been identified as a potential successor for Son on the left wing.
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McAtee, Grealish both Tottenham targets
TEAMtalk revealed earlier on Thursday that Everton’s move for Grealish hangs in the balance as he is waiting on offers from other clubs.
Everton have opened talks with City to sign Grealish on a season-long loan. But TEAMtalk understands the 29-year-old wants to play at a slightly higher level as the 2026 World Cup is now in sight.
Spurs can offer Grealish Champions League football and he is seriously tempted by such a move.
Sources state that there have been discussions over Grealish joining Spurs, though no formal offer has been made yet.
Reports from elsewhere claim Spurs could swoop for a Portuguese superstar to replace Son.
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