NEXT MADISON: Spurs in contract talks with £25m English player

Tottenham Hotspur aren’t any strangers to frustration. Any hopes of profitable a silver medal felt like an extended shot till coach Ange Postecoglou modified the narrative on the finish of the 2024/25 season.

Nonetheless, the enjoyment of profitable the Europa League was shortly eclipsed by the distress of the 2025/26 season, which noticed Spurs dangerously floundered within the Premier League. Consecutive seventeenth place finishes are unacceptable, however for Londoners it’s the new regular.

Roberto De Zerbi is set to alter that and there’s no denying that Spurs’ kind has improved significantly within the weeks for the reason that Italian took over throughout the March worldwide break.

De Zerbi is now hopeful of signing a proficient participant by the tip of the summer time.

Spurs in contract talks with English midfielder

Tottenham suffered some artistic issues final season, with James Maddison returning to kind after spending a lot of the season recovering from an anterior cruciate ligament harm, however nonetheless wants extra work.

That is the place gamers like Sabinho are available in. Spurs are in talks to signal the Manchester Metropolis star, with a charge nearly agreed for the Brazilian winger. Additional forwards are anticipated to reach at N17 within the coming months.

Equally, Brighton defender Jan Paul van Hecke has additionally attracted the eye of ENIC, with a gap provide made and rejected for the Dutch defender.

After all, Spurs have loads of points to enhance, and Sportsboom stories that ENIC have begun talks with Middlesbrough over the contract of Hayden Hackney, who is predicted to depart Riverside this summer time after Boro misplaced to Hull Metropolis within the Championship play-off remaining.

Everton are the frontrunners for the 23-year-old midfielder, however Tottenham are eyeing an opportunity to tug off a outstanding hijack. Hackney is price £25m and Middlesbrough would welcome a battle for him, however he’s coming into the ultimate 12 months of his contract.

Hackney will not be an attacking midfielder like Maddison, however he’s a pure artistic midfielder and can tick a few of the bins for De Zerbi.

Why Hackney could possibly be Spurs’ subsequent Madison

Hackney might not have led Middlesbrough to the Premier League, however he was named Participant of the 12 months after an impressive yr along with his boyhood membership.

It’s no coincidence that Boro’s poor efficiency on the finish of the season, mixed with Hackney’s lengthy harm absence, noticed them fall out of the automated promotion ranks.

Described by journalist Eric Payner as “the very best participant within the Championship”, Hackney is a technical midfielder, somebody who can unlock defenses and management the tempo and tempo of a match. He will certainly assist a Spurs staff that struggled to make issues occur on the ball and even had bother holding onto the ball.

Not like Maddison, he has extra versatility in midfield, which Tottenham might must bounce again. On condition that he has established himself as a high-level artistic expression within the Championship, he may even set up himself as a brand new model of the London membership’s Maddison, gaining expertise at second-tier facet Norwich Metropolis earlier than incomes a transfer to Leicester Metropolis.

Maddison can be hoping to safe a beginning spot underneath De Zerbi subsequent season, however whether or not he’s chosen over somebody like Hackney is one other matter.

With the ability and magnificence to win duels and plant completely different passing patterns whereas protecting the middle of the park, it is not onerous to see why Premier League groups are lining up for his signature. Though Everton seem to have the higher hand on this narrative, Hackney might merely be tempted to maneuver to London and cement his place as a key determine in De Zerbi’s resurgent staff.

Hackney, who’ve received the Championship and are able to problem for the Premier League, have secured a first-class midfielder with the right mixture of creativity and preventing skill who could possibly be a game-changer for De Zerbi’s facet subsequent season.