James Maddison has been one of the revelations in this new-look Tottenham Hotspur squad in the opening two matches of the Premier League. The new signing from Leicester City has been extremely impressive in his first two outings, filling in the creative passing and chance creation space that’s been essentially vacant since Christian Eriksen left the team a couple of years ago.
So you can understand how fans (and the club!) might be concerned after reports emerged after the match that Maddison was seen on crutches with a suspected foot injury sustained in Spurs’ 2-0 win over Manchester United. Maddison reportedly told fans that the crutches were “precautionary,” but Charlie Eccleshire is now saying that the attacking midfielder is now set to undergo a scan sometime today to determine if there is in fact an injury, and the prognosis.
Scan today for James Maddison, who left the THS on crutches and wearing a protective boot, which he said were precautionary. The exact nature of the injury is still being assessed, though as the boot suggests it’s understood to be a foot issue https://t.co/tMvCBOMMGF
— Charlie Eccleshare (@CDEccleshare) August 21, 2023
Yeah, I’m sweating too. Maddison has been phenomenal in the early part of the season, but the good news is that if he is sidelined Tottenham have a player ready to step into that creative role – Giovani Lo Celso. Gio hasn’t played a minute for Spurs yet this season, but he’s had a remarkable redemption arc this summer. Once tipped to leave the club at the earliest possible opportunity, Ange Postecoglou has apparently won him over to the point where he’d be happy to stay and fight for his place.
And depending on Maddison’s injury scan, that place might be coming as soon as this Saturday at Bournemouth, Tottenham’s next match. Even if the injury is just bruising, I can also see a scenario where Ange holds Maddison out as a precaution, since he doesn’t seem to be the kind of guy who will force a player to play through pain or discomfort if there’s another option on the bench, and he’s already saying in press conference that he’s still tinkering and getting a look at players in his squad to see how they fit.
Look, we don’t know anything yet. Maddison might be perfectly fine. We’ll find out soon, probably. But it is nice to know that Gio is around to step into that attacking creative 10 role if needed, and based on what we’ve seen from him in preseason I don’t think the step down would be that dramatic.
