Newcastle United are still being viewed as contenders to sign England star James Maddison this summer.
The 26-year-old will enter the last 12 months of his current contractual arrangement with Leicester City in the summer but the Magpies will be kept informed of movements by those close to the deal. Talk of Tottenham Hotspur moving in for Maddison were rife last weekend.
Yet Chronicle Live understands that Newcastle have not be discounted from the chase for the forward who flirted with the Magpies during the World Cup by hanging out with Toon stars during the tournament and fuelled fresh discussions of a move to St James' Park. Since then Leicester have moved swiftly to re-engage with the expectation a deal will soon be put on the table.
READ MORE: Eddie Howe has laid down challenge to his Newcastle players with Spurs and Liverpool on the chase
Leicester boss Brendan Rodgers, unable to lift City out of the bottom half of the table this season, said recently: "It’s just going to be about him and where he sees the next steps of his career. That’s nothing against the club or against anyone, he’s probably a player that wants to play at the very highest level and he’s showing he can do that."
Maddison though is not the only star on Newcastle's shopping list ahead of the summer market. Indeed, United were understood to alerted to Napoli star Khvicha Kvaratskhelia earlier in the campaign.
With Napoli on the brink of their first Serie A title since 1990, Kvaratskhelia - nicknamed Kvaradona by fans in Naples - has bagged 13 goals in 25 games this term. The Georgian was signed for just £10million from Rubin Kazan last summer.
But if Newcastle do make it to the Champions League they will need a couple of big stars to pep up competition and make a good fist of life back at the top table in Europe. Eddie Howe has played down talk of transfers with the January window just behind United but his scouts are already drawing up a long list for what will be a big summer.
Our 48-page Carabao Cup final special is available to pre-order now! Click HERE to get your copy as Newcastle United prepare for a historic day out at Wembley. Also available to purchase through local participating retailers from February 15.
READ NEXT
Newcastle notes: Eddie Howe's Ryan Fraser move and 'emotional' post-game scenes
Newcastle owners have their man, Eddie Howe's 'strong' words at half-time and fuming Sven Botman
Bournemouth make 'run for their money' statement but Newcastle change leaves Gary O'Neil 'desperate'
Newcastle boss Eddie Howe delivers 'very good' Allan Saint-Maximin assessment after Bournemouth
Newcastle get glimpse into brand new system Eddie Howe may be forced to use against Liverpool
