There has not been more hype over a Championship player than Norwich City’s James Maddison ever in the history of English football. At this point, almost every Premier League outfit is vying for the 21-year-old’s signature and Crystal Palace seems to have joined in on the race as well.
Priced at £25m, Maddison will be the most expensive player coming out of the Championship if Palace or any other top-flight team picks him up next summer. All signs prove that the asking figure might just rise to twice the amount if every single team lock heads for the attacking midfielder.
Granted Maddison has been prolific for the Canaries this season but is he worth all the hype? Yes!
The Englishman has just been nominated for the EFL Championship Player Of The Season award and has also been named in the Championship Team Of The Year. His exploits at the shadow of the Norwich attack has been astounding to witness and is quite deserved of a call-up to the big times.
Taking on the number 10 role with grace, Maddison has registered 14 goals to his name along with 10 assists in 43 total appearances. His creative abilities are second to none and have proven to deceive the very best of England’s second division.
Maddison is adept from dead-ball situations as well, along with the big bag of skills he brings to the table. He is agile and drifts in and out of tight spots with ease. The Eagles can greatly benefit from the 21-year-old’s creative talents but might not have the bank balance to complete the move.
The Selhurst Park-based outfit has already spent well over £40m in the last two transfer windows and are facing the financial concerns of relegation itself. Roy Hodgson wanted to make some big money moves in the January window but was heavily restricted after getting Alexander Sorloth and Jaroslaw Jach.
Now the only way Maddison’s transfer will be sanctioned is if Wilfried Zaha gets sold off in the summer. The Ivory Coast international had been previously called upon by some of the Premier League heavyweights and could be well on his way, come June.
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But even then, Eagles will have to convince the youngster into signing with them rather than pursuing the more illustrious prospects of Tottenham Hotspur or Liverpool. The team are held off the bottom three by just 3 points getting dropped to the Championship will completely throw off this transfer.
