Tottenham manager Ange Postecoglou says James Maddison has returned from his England heartbreak and is determined to “have a great season”.
The 27-year-old described how “devastated” he was in June after he was one of the last players left out of Gareth Southgate’s Euro 2024 squad that travelled to Germany and reached the final, which they lost 2-1 to Spain.
Now, ahead of an opening day away game at his former club Leicester City, Postecoglou admits Maddison is motivated by the snub: “I felt at Madders that he came back.
“He is determined to have a great season and hopefully that will get him back into the England squad. But more importantly for us, hopefully he can get back to the form we know he is capable of.”
He also explained why Maddison’s form dipped towards the end of last season and he stopped playing regularly for the England team, making way for other players.
“For Madders last year, the physical aspect was the most important thing,” added Postecoglou. “When he wasn’t 100 percent fit, he couldn’t perform as well as he wanted to, and even when he came back from his injury, I never felt he was back to the physical performance he had at the beginning of the year.”
“So that’s the real key for him. If he’s really well trained and in good physical shape, then I think his game will follow from that.
“That’s what we’re trying to do with him. We’ve tried to give him a really strong preseason to challenge him physically. I think if he feels good about that, the rest will come from there, rather than him lacking confidence or self-awareness.”
