Tottenham & Newcastle Enquire About Availability of Lille's Jonathan Ikone

Tottenham and Newcastle have both made enquiries regarding the availability of highly-rated Lille midfielder Jonathan Ikone.

The 22-year-old - who can play anywhere across the midfield or in an advanced number ten role - was in impressive form before the 2019/20 Ligue 1 campaign was curtailed early because of coronavirus, notching four goals and six assists.

Those numbers, although not earth shattering, marked Ikone's best return in a single season, and his good all around play was enough to earn a maiden call-up to Didier Deschamp's France squad.

His performances also appear to have caught the attention of Premier League scouts, with Telefoot journalist Julian Maynard claiming that both Tottenham and Newcastle have been in contact with Lille over a potential summer move.

Ikone's Lille contract has another three years to run, with Maynard suggesting that he may only leave if a 'significant offer' was to be put forward.

There's no doubting that Spurs require further reinforcements, with club-record signing Tanguy Ndombele struggling to impress since his arrival in north London. Giovani Lo Celso, meanwhile, has been the pick of the club's midfielders, but José Mourinho's rotation of players around him has often led to inconsistent displays.

As for Newcastle, whether or not they make a move could come down to whether or not the highly publicised takeover of the club - orchestrated by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund - goes through. Talks have been ongoing for a number of months, but are yet to reach a conclusion despite talk of the Magpies eyeing up stars such as Napoli's Kalidou Koulibaly.

Concluding a deal may not be straight forward for either party, with reports in March suggesting that Manchester United and Everton were also interested in Ikone. At the time, a price of around £60m was quoted for his services.

In terms of Ikone's career to date, he's a graduate of Paris Saint-Germain's youth academy. He made just four appearances from the bench, though, before being shipped off on loan to Montpellier, going on to join Lille on a five-year deal in 2018.

He broke into France's international plans late last year, netting eight minutes into his debut as Les Bleus overcame Albania in a qualifier for Euro 2020 - which will now be held next year.