After ending his season-long loan spell at Arsenal, Martin Odegaard has now returned to his parent club Real Madrid for the upcoming 2021-22 season which means that Arsenal now have a spot in their midfield area which has to be filled and Mikel Arteta looks to add more power and skills in his midfield position. A couple of names such as Manuel Locatelli, Renato Sanchez and Rueben Neves were linked with a move to the North London club in this year’s summer transfer window, the latest being Leicester City’s James Maddison.
The 24-year old English playmaker is heavily linked with the Gunners and his move to the North London club seems to be the most likely trade to happen.
About the Player
James Daniel Maddison is a 24-year-old English midfielder who currently plays for Leicester City and for the England National team. He was born on 23rd November 1996 in Coventry, West Midlands.
Maddison began his footballing career at Coventry City F.C in 2013 and played there for 3 seasons before joining Norwich City F.C in 2016 but was sent on loan and spent his 2016-17 season at the Scottish club Aberdeen F.C. Then in 2017, He was named in the Championship’s PFA Team of the Year and EFL Team of the Season. He ended his time at Norwich City F.C that is from 2016-2018 with a total of 47 appearances and scoring a total of 21 goals for them across all competitions.
At the start of the 2018-19 season, he signed for Premier League club Leicester City F.C and has now, currently played a total of 98 matches and has scored a total of 21 goals for them across all competitions. Recently, he played an important role in the Foxes winning the 2020-21 FA Cup.
What James Maddison will bring to the Arsenal F.C?
After the club failed to make Martin Odegaard a permanent stay at North London, there is a big hole to be filled in the midfield. And as we know that Arteta gave the no.10 to Emile Smith-Rowe which means that, the young academy player will now get more game-time this season. Still, he is very young and inexperienced to lead the midfield.
In James Maddison, what Arteta and the Gunners are getting is an attacking midfielder, who plays as a no.10 and has scored a lot of goals for both Norwich City F.C and for Leicester City F.C. He is just 24 and still has got a lot of experience playing in the Premier League and in European Championships. He is a complete no.10 who is good with his passing, dribbling, and can score some very important goals for the team. His off-the-ball movements compared to Odegaard’s is pretty good.
He is a natural-born leader who can act accordingly and can make Arsenal’s ship sail through pressure situations in a calmly way. During his time at Leicester, he has showed that he can be leader on the field, capable of leading the midfield, and has shown a very calm and composed state of mindset during tough times on the field. He was very instrumental for the Foxes in winning the 2020-21 FA Cup final.
He is a very good player who has proved his worth in the League by playing for the Foxes against some very tough opponents. Maddison is still pretty young and can prove to be a great asset for the Gunners in years to come. He can emerge as a leader for the Gunners in the midfield. He has a very calm approach with the ball and is capable of scoring crucial goals for the team. All-in-all, he is a great player that you can have on the team and Arsenal should cash in on this player if they want to build a strong squad for the upcoming season.
Leicester City have placed £60 million on the 24-year old English player and Arsenal are currently in the no.1 position to sign the player. Also, some rumors have been placed that their London Rivals, Chelsea are also looking to sign the player. Still, Arsenal have shown a great performance in this year’s summer transfer market and are now, willing to add a good attacking midfielder to their squad for redeeming themselves in the upcoming 2021-22 season.
