James Maddison finally made his highly anticipatd return to the pitch for Tottenham Hotspur last week against Leeds United, coming on for a handful of minutes in an important match. Although he could not give Spurs the winning goal in such a short amount of time, Maddison immediately looked a cut above his teammates, elevating the technical level of the attack significantly.
So there were high hopes for him against Chelsea on Tuesday night at Stamford Bridge, and whiie Madders did not score or assist in increased action with about 20-25 minutes played, the former Leicester City star, once again, looked much more composed and dangerous on the ball than his teammates.
Because Maddison was able to play a bit more against Chelsea than he did against Leeds without any issues, fans are hoping that Tottenham will be able to start their best current available player for the final game of the season on Sunday against Everton, which is a do or die proposition for the Lilywhites. if Spurs do not get at least a draw, then they can probably kiss the Premier League goodbye with West Ham United closin their 2025/26 campaign against Leeds.
James Maddison is not at full strength
However, by his own admission, it does not sound like James Maddison will be able to make that unlikely start. He told reporters after the loss to Chelsea, via the official Tottenham Hotspur web site, that he is not 100 percent.
Maddison said, âI felt good, yes. I've obviously been out for a long time, so I don't feel 100% sharp and fit, but I felt pretty good. That's why it's disappointing we didn't get anything out of the game, because I felt like we were pushing and I felt involved in that but, like I said, just that lack of quality in the front third just let us down on a few moments in a game where we probably should have got something, I think.â
While it is great that Maddison feels "pretty good" out there, it's obvious that he isn't 100 percent after only getting 26 minutes in total under his belt so far after missing a year with a torn ACL, which gets to be a bigger deal for a player like him who is nearing the age of 30.
So any Tottenham fan expecting Maddison to play even 60 minutes against Everton, even with no further games and everything on the line, may need to have their expectations significantly adjusted. He's still not ready.