Tottenham Hotspur’s hopes of qualifying for the Champions League were dealt another blow as they were beaten 3-2 by rivals Arsenal on Sunday, leaving them seven points adrift of fourth.
Ange Postecoglou’s side looked on course for a total disaster at the break as they walked in 3-0 down to the Gunners, who are fighting for the title, thanks to an own goal from Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and goals from Bukayo Saka and Kai Havertz.
However, they battled back during the second half, with goals from Cristian Romero and Heung-min Son, to make the scoreline look somewhat respectable, albeit they failed to pick up any points from the game.
There were a number of disappointing performers for Spurs in the match, and one player who must now be brutally ditched from the starting XI is attacking midfielder James Maddison.
James Maddison’s performance against Arsenal
The England international should be playing for his place in Gareth Southgate’s squad for the summer but performances like this will not do him any favours.
Football.london reporter Alasdair Gold handed him a match rating of 3/10 and stated that it was an ‘underwhelming’ display from the creative whiz, who ‘barely’ made any impact.
Whilst it was not solely down to his presence or lack thereof, Spurs lost 3-0 during Maddison’s 64 minutes on the pitch and won 2-0 during the 26 minutes without him.
The ex-Leicester star, whose performance was described as “extremely poor” by journalist Josh Bunting, did not do much in the final third and struggled out of possession.
As Gold put in his scathing analysis of Maddison’s showing, the English lightweight did not contribute much in possession as he lost the ball 14 times from 55 touches, only created one chance, and did not register a single shot on target.
Why Ange Postecoglou should drop James Maddison
Postecoglou must now brutally drop the 27-year-old forward from the starting XI for the upcoming clash with Chelsea at Stamford Bridge during the week.
With his latest no-show against Arsenal, Maddison has now failed to register a single goal or assist in his last six Premier League appearances for Spurs.
The Australian head coach has started the attacking midfielder in all six of those games but has not been rewarded with quality at the top end of the pitch.
He hit the ground running with three goals and five assists in his first 11 Premier League matches for Spurs, and then suffered an ankle injury that caused him to miss 13 competitive matches for club and country.
Maddison has only managed one goal and two assists in the 12 appearances he has made in the top-flight since his return from that ankle issue, which suggests that it has played a part in his downturn in form.
A spell on the bench, with five league games still left to play, could do him good, by resting his ankle and providing him with extra motivation to get back to his best, ahead of the final run-in.
Postecoglou must now drop the right-footed whiz for the game against Chelsea, and hope that Maddison responds with an improved display off the bench or in his next start.
