Martin Keown makes admission about 'magic' James Maddison after Tottenham win vs Chelsea
Martin Keown is hoping James Maddison isn't out injured for long after the Tottenham midfielder was forced off after 51 minutes against Chelsea on Saturday.
Spurs continued their climb up the Premier League table with a 2-0 win away at Stamford Bridge, with Mike Penders' own goal and a late strike from Mathys Tel winning them the London derby clash.
However, Spurs' win was somewhat marred by an injury blow to Maddison, who's only just returned to Roberto De Zerbi's starting line-up after missing almost all of last season.
De Zerbi confirmed after the game that he doesn't believe Maddison's injury to be serious, but admits that the playmaker needs to undergo medical checks for what looked like a groin injury.
Maddison's previous long-term injury was to his ACL, so it's not a recurrence of that.
However, any kind of setback at this point would be a big blow to Tottenham, especially after ex-Arsenal defender Keown was so impressed by his performance in the win at Chelsea on Saturday.
Martin Keown's big praise for James Maddison on MOTD
Maddison's fine form continued at Chelsea on Saturday, even though Spurs' goals came after he was substituted off and replaced by Conor Gallagher.
Stats by Sofascore show that the 29-year-old completed 86 per cent of passes to help Spurs have some strong spells in West London.
He also contributed defensively, winning the only tackle he challenged for, making one interception, completing one clearance and winning three of his five ground duels.
Keown was blown away by the Tottenham star's drive to create and is praying that his latest injury isn't a serious one.
"For me, he was like the Artful Dodger out there," said Keown on Match of the Day on Saturday night.
"You know when you're on the pitch and he's somebody who want the ball and make things happen.
"He was just so full of confidence.
"Just a few weeks ago, the manager was saying they were fragile, inconsistent and ignoring tactical instructions. Well, every single one of them stuck to the plan [versus Chelsea].
"Maddison gave them that little bit of magic in midfield and let's hope he's back fit again soon."
How Roberto De Zerbi's brutal criticism has sparked life into Tottenham
In Keown's post-match analysis on MOTD, he touched on De Zerbi's fierce criticism of Spurs after a 3-2 defeat to Aston Villa last month.
He said: "“It's difficult to explain because, in my career, 14 years as a coach, I've never seen one team like us. So fragile, so inconsistent."
De Zerbi also said that he had "no answer" to what was happening when Spurs' form was so bad.
Ultimately, it seems like De Zerbi's assessment put the onus on the players and they have since started to deliver.
Since that defeat to Villa in the final game before the international break, Spurs have picked up seven out of nine available Premier League points.
In the two games Maddison started, against Coventry and Chelsea, the North London side have won them both.
It's clear that De Zerbi's public criticism - and whatever he did at Hotspur Way during the international break - has worked massively and Spurs are now slowly starting to see themselves moving away from being a laughing stock and more towards a club that can actually have a very good season.