Tottenham's preparations for the new Premier League season have been thrown into complete disarray after James Maddison was stretchered off in the latter stages of their friendly against Newcastle in South Korea. Maddison, who missed the end of the last campaign, including the Europa League final, due to being sidelined, collapsed in a heap on the floor after signalling to the bench that he needed to come off.
Onlookers from the Tottenham bench, including Son Heung-min, who recently announced he was leaving the club, looked concerned as the England international appeared to be in some discomfort while being stretchered off by medical personnel.
Maddison Suffers Pre-Season Injury
The challenge that led to the injury appeared rather innocuous
Maddison's injury appeared to stem from the midfielder attempting to close down the ball with Newcastle in possession on the right-hand side. The Englishman seems fine as he goes in for a challenge with Anthony Elanga, but as the Swede plays the ball forward, Maddison can be seen jumping in the air and then hobbling on one foot while signalling to the bench that he is hurt.
It is unclear whether Elanga made contact with Maddison as he played the ball, causing the injury, or whether the former Leicester man instead tweaked a muscle or ligament as a result of a sudden change in direction. The 28-year-old was also seen with his head in his hands as he rolled on the floor until medical staff came to his aid.
The former Norwich youngster has struggled with injuries of late, finding himself out of action during two spells of the 2024/25 season, the latter of which ruled him out of the Europa League final.
GIVEMESPORT Key Statistic: Since joining Tottenham, Maddison has spent a total of 144 days on the sidelines.
Speaking post-match, Spurs manager Thomas Frank confirmed that the issue is the same knee that Maddison injured last campaign, saying it looked like a 'bad' and 'brutal' injury.
The injury couldn't have come at a worse time for Spurs and Frank, who is already sweating on the fitness of Destiny Udogie and Dominic Solanke. Though the former is expected to return soon, the timing of both injuries and the impact it has had on their respective pre-season training means that Spurs may be without them both when they face PSG on 13th August in the UEFA Super Cup.
Meanwhile, with Son's departure also imminent, there could be even more pressure on new signing Mohamed Kudus to be the driving force of the Spurs attack should Maddison be due for a significant spell out.