How long James Maddison is now likely to miss after cruel ACL injury blow
Tottenham have been dealt a major blow as James Maddison is now out with a long-term injury.
Maddison was withdrawn in Tottenham’s pre-season clash with Newcastle, and he has now learned that he will miss most of next season.
Tottenham have confirmed that Maddison will undergo surgery after rupturing his anterior cruciate ligament (ACL), and will miss several months of action.
ACL ruptures are known as one of the worst injuries in football, and Spurs are no strangers to it, and a timeframe on his return has now been estimated.
Maddison could miss a minimum of eight months of action
Maddison is not the first Spurs player to suffer this injury, with Rodrigo Bentancur also rupturing his ACL over two years ago.
Radu Dragusin, Ivan Perisic and Luke Amos have also fallen victim to this injury while playing for Tottenham, and all had similar recovery times.
Dragusin is still absent from training, having ruptured his ACL in February, and was given a nine-month estimated recovery time.
- Spurs suffered a lot of injuries last season, with Ange Postecoglou’s playing style resulting in an increase in muscular injuries.
- Maddison’s injury came as he went down off the ball after coming on as a substitute against Newcastle.
| Player | ACL recovery time |
| Bentancur | 8.5 months |
| Perisic | 9-10 months |
| Amos | 8 months (second time) |
| Dragusin | 9 months (estimated) |
Bentancur was out for a similar period, returning to action after eight and a half months out, while Amos was unfortunate enough to suffer the same injury on both legs during his time in the Spurs academy, and his second one lasted around eight months.
Maddison can therefore expect to be out for a minimum of eight months, but will hope that he can return before the end of the season to play some part for Tottenham.
Maddison has long-term concern after ACL
Even if Maddison recovers over the standard eight months on average, nursing his knee back from injury, and reaching his previous performance levels, are two different challenges.
When players in the past have suffered from ACLs, some have failed to return to their best physical level, especially if a lot of their game is built around pace.
The other side of North London experienced this with Theo Walcott and Hector Bellerin, with both Arsenal players declining as they lost a yard of speed following their long-term absences.
Maddison is not a speedy outlet, but he will hope that he can eventually recover and return to 100 per cent in tim for the 2026-27 season, and next year’s pre-season could be crucial in his recovery.
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