“It’s a disgrace to the country and to James himself,” Leicester City manager Brendan Rodgers told Sky Sports at the end of the game against Nottingham Forest.. And it is that neither the Northern Irish coach, nor the fans foxesNeither James Maddison himself can understand why Gareth Southgate does not call the English midfielder with the senior team. With a double and an assist, the ’10’ of the Foxes once again left another performance to remember on the lawn of the King Power Stadium. When Leicester City most needed their leader, he once again put the team on his back to beat the Tricky Trees and achieve both the first victory and the first clean sheet of the season. And it is that, despite the 19th position (with four points) of the foxes this course, ‘Madders’ continues to dazzle its own and rivals.
The current level of the English midfielder is such that his non-call with the Three Lions has become a national debate. And it is that there are many footballers who, with worse statistics (and worse performance), have entered Gareth Southgate’s plans. So far in 2022/2023 (eight games), James Maddison has five goals and two assists. But is that In all of last season, among all competitions, the Englishman’s figures were as a striker: 18 goals and 12 assists. As Brendan Rodgers said after the game against Nottingham Forest, “You see his talent, his level of performance over the last 18 months… Only Harry Kane has created and scored more goals than him (among English players)” .
Better than Saka and Foden
Since his arrival at the King Power Stadium from Norwich City back in 2018, James Maddison has always proven to be an exceptional footballer with outstanding qualities. However, the regularity in his performance was not his strong point. Faced with his exceptional set-piece kick –one of the goals against Steve Cooper’s team was a free kick–, vision of the game and technical ability, there were the failures to appear in some games, which even led him to lose ownership in some sections of the 2020/2021 season. But 18 months ago, James Maddison made his performance roller coaster a completely horizontal line. As analyzed by the technician of the foxes“if you want creativity, personality… He has improved defensively, he can play in various positions. He is an absolutely exceptional player.” A moment of form that allows him to be at the head of the best attacking midfielders in the country.
Bukayo Saka, Phil Foden, Mason Mount, Conor Gallagher, Jadon Sancho or Jack Grealish are some of the players who do have the support of the English coach and, coincidentally, all of them are behind James Maddison as far as figures are concerned. The attacking midfielder of the foxeswho has contributed 27 goals to his team (between goals and assists) since 2021/2022, scores or assists every 114 minutes. A ratio that improves that of one of the stars of Manchester City (130 ‘) or the young winger of Arsenal (161′). Leicester City’s ’10’ is even ahead of other players who also play in his position (and have been called up by Gareth Southgate), who between last season and this season reached 23 goal appearances.
A testimonial presence
Improving the numbers, in terms of appearances, of James Maddison with the English team is not complicated either. Even if it is by popular acclamation, as is the case with Iago Aspas in Spain. And it is that, since the midfielder of the foxes was called up for the first time in October 2018 by the English team, he has only played one game with the Three Lions: 34 minutes in England’s 7-0 win over Montenegro in Euro 2020 qualifying. A match that was played on November 14, 2019. Both in his first appearance in the list of the English national team As in 2019, in this case in the month of September, ‘Madders’ sat on the bench during the four games.
Though the English team, which is chaining one of its worst streaks since it was runner-up in the last European Championship (three draws and three defeats in its last six games), has not had one of the most fit English footballers in recent months in recent calls, the ‘new Madders’ does not lose hope. And it is that, as Brendan Rodgers himself pointed out at a press conference, the midfielder of the foxes He has grown as a footballer, but also as a person: “He is 25 years old. When he first came, he was a young boy, you saw his haircuts and his bags… But he has matured. He is a great boy. It is an absolute pleasure to watch him play.”. That is why he hopes that, in these coming months, a “brilliant player” like James Maddison “will continue with the form that he has shown and somehow enter the (national) team.”
‘Madders’ himself, his first supporter
James Maddison, designated by the Premier League as ‘Man of the Match’ against Nottingham Forest, is the first to believe in his qualities, and the first to believe that he still has a chance of representing England at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. “I am not naive. I am a soccer man and I know there are top players, top players in those forward areas, but I have confidence in myself, that I am a top player and that I can be in that category”stated in Sky Sports after the ninth league day of the English championship. The ’10′ of the foxes He also stated that he will continue “working hard and with the mentality that I have to make an effort to get in (in the squad), because those players from the big clubs are at the moment and they are good players, first-class players.” Even so, ‘Madders’ believes that “there could be a space for me, so I will continue to work hard and do performances like this”.
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James Maddison, the ‘Iago Aspas of England’