The former Tottenham and Liverpool midfielder believes one player holds the key to his old club remaining in the Premier League
Danny Murphy believes Roberto De Zerbi must risk playing James Maddison even at "60 or 70% fit" because he is Tottenham's hope of staying up.
Maddison has been back in full training for a while now following his long route back from his anterior cruciate ligament injury last summer and it is now nine months since that moment in pre-season in Seoul and the subsequent operation. Spurs have been understandably taking it cautiously with the midfielder, who had just come back from a medial ligament injury when his ACL went, and while he has been on the bench for the past three games under De Zerbi, he was never going to play a part.
football.london asked De Zerbi on Thursday if Maddison could play a part against Leeds on Monday night and get a few minutes at the end.
"I'm thinking about James Madison because I'm watching a top, top player. Maybe he's not ready yet to play, but as a physical condition, not for the rhythm, for the intensity of the game. We are playing in the Premier League, the most difficult league in terms of intensity and rhythm," said the Italian.
"But as a player, it's great, as a coach, watching one player like this. Especially for me, because I was number 10. And I'm sensitive in number 10 players like Xavi Simons, Maddison, Kulusevski, Kudus. We have a lot of number 10s, but I want to see."
Former Spurs and Fulham midfielder Murphy believes it's crucial that Maddison plays now with the north London club fighting for their Premier League status and sitting just one point above the drop zone with three games to go.
"At the moment with Tottenham, it doesn’t feel as though they have got someone who's got that ability, and it's not when you haven't got the ball, because they're working hard enough. I think it's more when you've got the ball, being brave and having the ability to play free and try and make passes and play through balls and get on it when it's pressurised and the fans are whinging. Who's that person?
"I've seen him on the bench the last few games, and Maddison is the one. Maddison is the one who could save them because he is a super talent who plays free. He can be the one that fires the ammunition to the strikers, whoever it is, whether they play Kolo Muani up there, or Richarlison. The problem is whether he is fit enough. Like, if he's on the bench, he's got to be close, and it might be a case that now Xavi Simons is injured, whether he's 60, 70% fit, I'd be risking Madison, because he's their hope," Murphy told Betarades.gr.
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Murphy believes that lack of creativity is where Spurs fall short compared to their rivals down the bottom of the table.
"Some of Conor Gallagher's best traits are his athleticism, tenacity, and fight. Sarr is another midfielder, along with Palhinha. If you played against those three, they're going to work, they're going to fight, they're going to run, they're going to scrap. The problem they've got at the minute is creativity," said the BBC pundit.
"There's no Maddison, Kulusevski, Simons, Solanke, and the forward boys are looking low on confidence. Kolo Muani, who I like generally, is struggling while Odobert's injured. Tel isn't really hitting the heights they thought he would. There's not one who you can really pin and go, he's the man.
"At West Ham, you've got Bowen, and you know he's going to keep going and keep making chances. Summerville, you could throw into that. Forest, you've got Morgan Gibbs-White, and he's the man who makes stuff happen."