The Aberdeen boss, who worked with the England international after taking him on loan from Leicester, is not surprised by mounting transfer talk
James Maddison is more than good enough to play for Manchester United, says Derek McInnes, with the Leicester midfielder capable of representing “any of the big clubs in England”.
Transfer talk has been building steadily around the 23-year-old for some time.
Having stepped up to the Premier League with ease at Leicester, the talented playmaker is said to be attracting admiring glances from Old Trafford.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is said to be in the market for further creativity at United, with Maddison being monitored alongside Aston Villa star Jack Grealish .
The reported interest comes as no surprise to McInnes, who has seen what an England international midfielder is capable of at close quarters.
He took Maddison to Aberdeen on loan from Norwich in 2016-17 and considers him to be ready for another step up the footballing ladder.
The Dons boss told the Press and Journal of Maddison: “I always thought James was the best technician of a ball I’ve seen.
“I haven’t seen someone who manipulates the ball in the way he can and that potential is really being realised now.
“James has said that coming to Aberdeen has helped be the making of him because he had to grow up a bit, he had to tough things out and he had to learn how to deal with the demands of playing here.
“He was developing then and the games up here were tough for him.
“You can’t say that you watched him and thought he would go from playing with us, back to Norwich, on to Leicester and then potentially to a club like Manchester United so quickly.
“But you see him now, he has developed so much that I think he could play for any of the big clubs in England. That’s how good he is.
“The improvement in him over the last two seasons especially has been massive and it shows what can be done.”
Maddison recorded seven Premier League goals and as many assists for Leicester in the 2018-19 campaign, with the target found six times and a further three efforts teed up for others before football shut down amid the coronavirus pandemic in 2019-20.
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