Former Crystal Palace owner, Simon Jordan, has fired a dig at James Maddison in response to the idea that Daniel Levy is signing the wrong players for Tottenham.
James Maddison for Tottenham
Tottenham knew they had a fine player on their hands when they secured James Maddison, with the midfielder costing £40m, despite the fact Leicester City had just been relegated from the Premier League.
He was brilliant in his first few months at Spurs, but after returning from an ankle injury from an ankle injury which kept him sidelined for over two months, he struggled to hit the heights of his early performances for the club.
The season so far has had its ups and downs, both for Maddison and Spurs. While he has shone in displays such as the 4-0 win over Manchester City, he has suffered some setbacks at Tottenham.
The most obvious of these came when he was replaced by Pape Matar Sarr at half-time in Tottenham’s 4-1 win over West Ham, a match which was level at the time of his exit.
Jordan has raised doubts over whether Tottenham have the ability to win a league title, because they do not spend enough money in the transfer window and he does not believe Ange Postecoglou possesses a squad with as much quality as his rivals.
Speaking on talkSPORT (1:40), Jordan said: “I think the real issue is the kind of players that you buy and the kind of players that the funds that are made available allow you to buy. What Ange Postecoglou can’t do.”
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In response, radio host, Jim White, asked, “Well, it’s on Daniel [Levy], isn’t it?”
Jordan responded, “It’s on most football clubs. So how much, there’s only a few football clubs who are spending all amounts of money, probably about three or four. Spurs spend a decent amount of money. If you want to be a Premier League winner, they’re going to have to spend more money and get a different calibre of player.
He continued, “You buy players like James Maddison, who are very technically gifted players. But I don’t think he’d get in Man City’s side. I don’t think he’d get in Liverpool’s side. I don’t think he’d get in Arsenal’s side. And these are the teams that are potentially going to win leagues. But he’ll get into Spurs’ side because he’s technically a very good player.”
James Maddison stats actually look quite good
While Jordan has chosen to use Maddison to make his point, the 28-year-old has offered Spurs plenty in attack this season. He has five league goals, which is already more than he scored last season, and three assists in 11 starts. This is more than his much-praised teammate Dejan Kulusevski, as well as a number of players from top Premier League sides.
The key for Maddison is consistency and when he is at his best, such as early last season when Spurs were the league leaders, he would be selected for a lot of teams across Europe.
There is no doubt many supporters would be happy to see Spurs match the top spending of their biggest rivals, but when you consider some of Tottenham’s most expensive signings, spending more money is not always the solution.