Tottenham Hotspur’s hopes of qualifying for the Champions League suffered another blow as they lost 3-2 to rivals Arsenal on Sunday, leaving them seven points behind fourth place.
Ange Postecoglou’s side appeared to be heading for complete disaster at half-time as they lost 3-0 to the title-challenging Gunners thanks to an own goal from Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and goals from Bukayo Saka and Kai Havertz .
However, they fought back in the second half with goals from Cristian Romero and Heung-min Son, making the result look somewhat respectable even if they didn’t pick up any points in the game.
There were a number of disappointing performances from Spurs in this game and one player who will now have to be brutally dropped from the starting XI is attacking midfielder James Maddison.
James Maddison’s performance against Arsenal
The England international was expected to play for his place in Gareth Southgate’s squad this summer, but performances like this will do him no favors.
Football.london reporter Alasdair Gold gave him a match rating of 3/10 and said it was a “disappointing” performance from the creative genius who made “hardly any” impression.
Although it wasn’t just his presence or absence, Spurs lost 3-0 during Maddison’s 64 minutes on the pitch and won 2-0 in the 26 minutes without him.
|
James Madison |
Against Arsenal (04/28/24) |
|---|---|
|
Minutes played |
64 |
|
Touches |
55 |
|
Key passes |
1 |
|
Dribbling completed |
0/3 |
|
won duels |
2/8 |
|
Statistics via Sofascore |
|
The ex-Leicester star whose performance was described as “extremely poor”. by journalist Josh Bunting, didn’t do much in the final third and struggled to get the ball out.
As Gold outlined in his scathing analysis of Maddison’s performance, the English lightweight didn’t contribute much in terms of possession as he lost the ball 14 times in 55 touches, created just one chance and didn’t take a single shot on target.
Why Ange Postecoglou should dump James Maddison
Postecoglou will now have to brutally leave the 27-year-old striker out of the starting XI for the upcoming game against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in midweek.
In his most recent no-show against Arsenal, Maddison has not scored a single goal or provided a single assist in his last six Premier League games for Spurs.
The Australian head coach has used the attacking midfielder in all six of those games but has not been rewarded with quality at the top end of the pitch.
He started with three goals and five assists in his first 11 Premier League games for Spurs, then suffered an ankle injury that caused him to miss 13 competitive games for club and country.
Maddison has managed just one goal and two assists in the 12 games he has played in the top flight since returning from his ankle problem, suggesting this has played a role in his decline in form.
A stint on the bench with five league games left to play could do him some good, resting his ankle and giving him extra motivation to get back to his best before the final run-in.
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Ange Postecoglou could be inclined to strengthen his team’s attacking midfield this summer.
Postecoglou will now have to do without his right foot for the game against Chelsea and hope that Maddison responds with a better performance as a substitute or in his next start.