According to Mark Douglas at iNews, Leicester’s James Maddison and Arsenal’s Kieran Tierney are top of Eddie Howe’s wishlist this summer.
He reports that Howe is set to meet Dan Ashworth this week for a key recruitment meeting, with plans set to step up now Champions League football has been secured.
A senior source tells Douglas that we remain keen to recruit players who can “go on a journey” with the club – as the likes of Bruno Guimaraes has done already.
On Maddison, he adds that Howe’s long-term target is ‘interested’ in a move to St James’ Park, claiming he’s already discussed a potential switch with England teammate Kieran Trippier while away on international duty.
It’s thought there’ll be a focus on ‘quality players who can make a real difference’, coupled with the importance of good characters who can fit into the close knit dressing room and the high intensity, hard-working style Howe has worked on.
Tierney is no longer first choice at Arsenal and will be looking for a new challenge – a move to Newcastle would bring him closer to family in Scotland – while Maddison is entering the final 12 months of his contract at Leicester and looks certain to leave; whether they stay up or not.
