Macclesfield chairman Mike Rance has tipped Elliott Hewitt to become the next Gareth Bale after agreeing a big-money move to Ipswich.

The promising right-back had a medical with the Championship outfit yesterday and the move is set to be completed today, which happens to be the youngster’s 18th birthday.

It is thought Macc will receive an initial fee in the region of £150,000, which could rise to as much as £500,000, surpassing the club record of £300,000 they received from Stockport County for Rickie Lambert in 2002.

“We recognise that it’s part of our job to help players progress their careers and I think the deal we got is a good one for us,” said Rance.

“There is a significant fee plus additional payments if Elliott is successful there. With guarantees and performance-related add-ons, it could be our highest-ever transfer.”

Rance has watched Hewitt go from a boy to a man at the Moss Rose, making a meteoric rise over the last 12 months.

Born in north Wales, Hewitt progressed through Macc’s youth ranks before making his first-team debut at the end of the 2010/11 season, becoming the club’s youngest-ever league player at 16.

He then made 24 appearances last season while representing Wales Under-21s and his form was such that a move up the Football League was inevitable, regardless of Macc’s relegation.

And Rance feels Ipswich is the right destination for Hewitt after having lengthy negotiations with Tractor Boys’ chief executive Simon Clegg, who has an OBE and CBE and was previously chief executive of the British Olympic Association.

“He (Clegg) is a heavy hitter,” said Rance, “but I think we’ve agreed a good deal for the club and for Elliott.

“Elliott’s best interests were part of the process. I have a good relationship with his father and as a club, we’ve always acted in loco parentis for Elliott.

“I wanted him to go to a club that would give him a chance, which in turn we’d benefit from downstream in terms of financial value.

“I’m happy he’s going to a club where he has a reasonable chance of making first-team appearances and getting promoted into the Premier League.

“We didn’t want him to be lost in the 10s and 100s of young foreign players at a Premier League club.”

Hewitt has already made five U21 appearances for Wales and while he favours the opposite flank to compatriot Bale, Rance believes he has the attacking thrust to emulate the Tottenham star.

“I’ll watch Elliott’s progress with great interest because I believe he has the potential to be another Gareth Bale,” he said.

“He’s strong and aggressive on the pitch and he’s a nice young man, and even though I’ve only had a small part to play in his career I’ll be very proud.”

Macc moved swiftly to bring in some fresh blood on their right flank, with Jack Macreth becoming their first summer signing yesterday.

The pacy winger, 19, has signed a one-year deal with the Silkmen after being named Barrow’s player of the season, helping them to a mid-table finish in the Blue Square Premier.

More new arrivals are needed as Rance expects several contracted players to leave this summer, while out-of-contract midfielder Ross Draper has until the end of June to confirm whether he’ll accept his offer of a new deal.

“Many of our senior players don’t want to play in the Conference,” added Rance. “Some we’ll get significant fees for, some we won’t.”