Newcastle United are closing in on a move for AC Milan midfielder Sandro Tonali, but it might yet come at a cost for Eddie Howe's side.

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Widespread reports suggest Newcastle sporting director Dan Ashworth is in Milan finalising terms for Tonali, who will set the Magpies back around £55m.

However, should that deal indeed go through, Sky Sports reports that a move for Leicester City's £50m-rated James Maddison will in turn become a lot more difficult.

That is because the Magpies, who will compete in the Champions League group stage next season for the first time in two decades, risk falling outside of Financial Fair Play rules if they bring in both players.

Should Newcastle prioritise signing James Maddison?

There is no doubting Tonali's quality, which was clear to see last season when featuring in 34 of Milan's 38 Serie A matches and starting all 12 games as they fell just short of reaching the Champions League final.

However, Milan's supposed haggling over a fee means Newcastle will have to make Tonali the second-most expensive signing in their history, behind only the £63m spent to sign Alexander Isak last year.

As football writer Sam Tighe put it following reports United's initial offer had been knocked back, "Tonali is pretty overrated and not worth spending €50m on. Newcastle are fortunate it got rejected and should not bid more."

Toon fans were quick to dispel that opinion, but the argument is only strengthened when factoring in that Maddison is unlikely to be at St James' Park next season should Tonali arrive.

The midfield duo are far from like-for-like in terms of their playing styles – Tonali is a holding midfielder, whereas Maddison is far more attack-minded – so comparing the two in certain areas does not make sense.

However, in terms of what they can bring to Newcastle, Maddison surely must be higher up the list.

Newcastle had the joint-best defensive record in the Premier League last season, level on 33 goals conceded with champions Manchester City, whereas their tally of 68 goals scored – while still impressive – was only the sixth best, behind the likes of Tottenham Hotspur (70) and Brighton and Hove Albion (72).

Tonali would make Newcastle stronger defensively, while also providing some further balance to midfield, but with Bruno Guimaraes bossing things in that area last season, Maddison looks ideally suited to playing just off Alexander Isak and Callum Wilson – or just one of the two should Howe opt for one up top.

With ten goals and nine assists last season in an otherwise poor Leicester side – only Wilson (23) had more goal involvements among Newcastle players – Maddison, hailed as "sensational" by former Leicester boss Brendan Rodgers, showed his quality once again.

Indeed, he ranked in the top 4% of all midfielders across Europe's top five leagues for goals scored last season and in the top 8% for touches in the opposition box, as per The Analyst.

While impressive in a number of different other areas, Tonali still only ranked in the top 43% for possession won – again among midfielders in Europe's elite leagues – and 50% for touches. It was in terms of chances created the Italian thrived (top 16%), yet he could not come close to Maddison (top 6%).

Howe, therefore, has a huge decision to make if it is a shoot-out between which of the two to sign. On the basis of what the players can offer, and what Newcastle need right now, Maddison might just be the smart choice.