Tottenham need more players like ‘clever’ James Maddison, he was only positive in loss v Fulham
Tottenham need to sign more players like James Maddison after his performance in the disappointing defeat against Fulham on Saturday (16 March).
Although it wasn’t a very high bar, the England international was certainly one of the better Spurs players after starting in the 3-0 defeat at Craven Cottage.
The 27-year-old tried to make things happen for his side, but they simply weren’t good enough as the loss dealt a huge blow to their hopes of finishing in the Champions League places this season.
Speaking on co-commentary on Sky Sports Main Event, Alan Smith was impressed by the way the attacking midfielder created an opportunity for himself in the first half against the Cottagers.
“Such a clever effort,” said Smith. “Talk about quick feet, one of those where the keeper hasn’t got time to set his feet, he’s not far away here. Leno glued to the spot.”
Maddison was unfortunate to not see his effort hit the back of the net and, if it had, it could have been a completely different evening for Tottenham as the score was still 0-0 at the time.
But instead, they fell to pieces from that moment onwards, with Rodrigo Muniz opening the scoring just before half-time.
Ange Postecoglou would have been looking for a reaction from his side in the second half, but that is precisely what he didn’t get, as Sasa Lukic grabbed a second goal just minutes after the break before Muniz got his second of the evening just past the hour mark.
It was a long way back for Spurs from that moment onwards and they weren’t able to find a goal to get themselves back into the contest.
It wasn’t through a lack of effort from Maddison, though, as he continued to get on the ball and tried to create some openings for his side.
Before he was replaced by midfielder Rodrigo Bentancur on 66 minutes, the attacking midfielder played two key passes and created one big chance [SofaScore].
He also came out on top in two out of his three ground duels and won two free-kicks for his side as he got on the ball and looked to drive forward.
The Englishman was pretty tidy in possession as he recorded an 88% pass success rate despite his side falling to a crushing defeat.
It wasn’t a vintage performance from Maddison by any means, but despite many of his teammates failing to impress, he continued to try his best and had some decent moments.
They are the type of characters Spurs need when things aren’t going their way and they fall behind in games.
It will now be a long two weeks for the players before they return to action after the international break.
In other Tottenham news, Stan Collymore is spot on about an “outrageous” Spurs financial development.
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