Maddison controversy blasted after Tottenham online spat
Tottenham duo James Maddison and Brennan Johnson should not be criticised for their appearance at Alexandra Palace after the side’s draw with Wolves, according to Ian Darke.
The pair were seen at the North London venue watching the World Darts Championship hours after Spurs were held to a 2-2 draw (29 December), sparking furious reactions from fans – some of whom demanded the exit of Ange Postecoglou.
Maddison was then embroiled in a minor spat with a supporter on Instagram (PDC Darts, 30 December), branding the social media user a “wally” for calling out the duo’s public socialising after another poor result on the pitch.
“It’s a good story for the newspapers I suppose, and in Tottenham’s current situation, people were going to pounce on it, I think,” TV commentator Darke exclusively told Tottenham News.
“If they’d beaten Wolves at the weekend, no-one would care two hoots about it. It would be different if they were knocking back pints of beer and stuffing their faces with popcorn, but the players are allowed some recreation time.
“Some of them look at the wall and feel depressed all night, and others get on with their lives. It’s a storm in a teacup, really. It doesn’t affect their ability to play for Tottenham or mean they don’t care.”
Tottenham under pressure to deliver v Newcastle
The Tottenham supporter in question who was responded to by Maddison will, along with those who agree with them, forget the matter very quickly if their side can return to winning ways against Newcastle United on Saturday (4 January).
The lunchtime kick-off provides an opportunity to move back into the top half and while that cannot be the extent of the club’s ambitions, it would at least be a springboard to gradually climb higher.
Maddison has enjoyed purple patches of form this campaign and is also looking to return to the reckoning of the England setup, with a clean slate under Thomas Tuchel having missed the cut for the Euro 2024 squad.
Welsh international Johnson has also had an improved season in an individual sense, but the side overall have massively faltered and Postecoglou is under increasing pressure to become more pragmatic.
As for the World Darts Championship, Maddison and Johnson are not the only Spurs players to have been snapped at the tournament. Injured defender Micky van de Ven has also been in attendance at Ally Pally to watch the action.
In other Tottenham news, a former Premier League defender has been considered to shore up the backline.
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