James Maddison has had to endure a difficult time at Tottenham over the last few months as his injury record has once again come under scrutiny.
The influential midfielder was ruled out of the Europa League final with a knee problem, and he has suffered yet another issue in the latter stages of Spurs’ pre-season campaign.
Maddison was stretchered off in Tottenham’s game against Newcastle on 3 August, and he was later seen leaving the stadium on crutches after full-time.
The Englishman was only a matter of minutes into his return to action following the injury from May, but he could now be looking at another lengthy period spent on the sidelines.
This article includes exclusive comment from former Tottenham scout Bryan King.
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Tottenham have ‘question mark’ over Maddison after fresh injury
Maddison could now be looking at another lengthy lay-off at Spurs.
The Lilywhites are yet to reveal the true extent of the injury, but it certainly appears to be a major concern, given the reaction that it has received from Thomas Frank.
It has been suggested that the worst case scenario for the 28-year-old could be that his latest injury is an ACL rupture, which would likely leave him sitting on the sidelines for at least the next nine months.
Ex-Spurs scout Bryan King – speaking exclusively to Tottenham News – believes that another prolonged period on the sidelines will leave the N17 outfit with a crucial decision to make on Maddison’s future.
“It puts a question mark over Maddison,” King said.
“He’s been training for two or three months to get himself back, just to be on the pitch for a few minutes and be back to square one again.
“He’s under contract, he’s got to get fit now and then Spurs have got to see whether he’s going to be part of their future or not.
“It certainly appeared to be the same knee, and if it is, he could be another six or eight weeks before he’s back.
“It looked like a fairly simple challenge, but if it has disturbed the ligament, or the ACL, then it’s going to be a long time for him.”
Maddison injury is a huge blow for Frank
Maddison has been a hugely important figure for Spurs over the last few years when he has been able to stay fit.
The former Leicester man is one of the Premier League’s most exciting playmakers, and his likely absence for the opening stages of the season, at least, will be a big blow for Frank.
The new boss will be desperate to get his reign off to the strongest possible start, and the England star would have been a central part of that, even if he was perhaps not ready to start games straight away.
Instead, the Dane now faces the prospect of potentially several months without one of his most high-quality options.
Tottenham’s squad is strong enough to have capable cover already, but there can be no getting around the fact that this is an issue that Frank didn’t need.