James Maddison had the perfect response to criticism from Roy Keane. The Tottenham star returned to the starting lineup after almost a month out of action and had an immediate impact.
Spurs hosted Manchester United at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in the battle of the big six's worst performing sides this season. And after a horrendous injury crisis, head coach Ange Postecoglou was able to welcome back first team stars Guglielmo Vicario and Maddison to his starting lineup.
And in the 13th minute Maddison opened the scoring, tapping home after Lucas Bergvall's initial shot was only parried out by Andre Onana.
Maddison had received harsh criticism from former Manchester United star Keane prior to kick-off. Speaking on the Stick to Football podcast earlier in the week, Keane said: "Which players [are we] talking about coming back that can help Spurs? I agree with [Micky van de Ven, Guglielmo Vicario] – that's two.
"[Destiny] Udogie is not bad. We saw James Maddison at Tamworth, he was taken off! Tamworth are non-league. People say, 'Maddison's the man', but when is he going to step up to the plate?
"He got relegated with Leicester [City] and [looks like] with Spurs. Maddison isn't bad but if you think he's going to come back and get Spurs top six, you're in cuckoo land.
"He's a talented player, but if you're a player in the Spurs dressing room and he's back in the squad, you wouldn't be looking and going, 'James is back today – we're going to be fine'."
Maddison's goal was a strong enough response, but the England man went one further with his celebration. He looked straight for the camera and delivered his usual darts celebration before openign and shutting his thumb and fingers in a talking motion and then putting his finger to his mouth in a shushing gesture, possibly aimed at Keane.