James Maddison’s playing time does not bother Postecoglou as he speaks about not being in the “happiness business”.
James Maddison’s playing time has been a subject of debate for quite some time if you are of a Spurs persuasion.
As he considered the vice captain’s significance to the team, Ange Postecoglou remarked that everyone would love to be as confident as James Maddison, at least some of his fellow Tottenham players.
When Maddison made his comeback to the starting lineup following two Premier League games as a substitute, it seemed like he had a point to prove at Manchester City last weekend. He did just that, scoring the first two goals in the 4-0 victory.
Maddison was typically to-the-point in his post-match assessment, saying that if he went through “tough spells of having two games out, I’m at the age now where I’m able to go and show you that this team is much better with me in it”.
To put it another way, he was not pleased with being benched against Aston Villa and Ipswich. In the former, he had scored a free kick to complete the 4-1 victory. Spurs lost 2-1 to Ipswich, and they will visit Fulham on Sunday.
“Yeah, I get that [Maddison was unhappy] but at the same time, I’m not in the happiness business,” Postecoglou said. “They are all here to help us be successful whether you’re playing or not. Sometimes when you come on for 10 minutes you can help us change a course of our season.
“For me, you’re a member of this squad. No one is guaranteed anything. I don’t say to players: ‘You are going to play 55 games.’ It’s unlikely anyone will do that; in fact no one will. So if he misses a couple of games … he’s disappointed, that’s fine. What I am looking at is when you do play make your biggest possible impact and that’s what he did.”
Whether Maddison is on the pitch or in interviews, his confidence is always evident. Recall his well-known statement that, even at family roast dinners, he wants to be the “main man.”
“I don’t think he puts that on,” Postecoglou said. “He is genuine in that. He does have enormous self-belief, which is a great thing to have in life. We all want to have that self-confidence in whatever area we are involved in. He wants to be the catalyst for things. The challenge for Madders and all these guys is to turn that into a positive force where the team benefits as much as he does individually.
“I’m trying to give room for this team to grow and the individuals within it to grow and make more of an impact on each other as much as themselves. There are probably guys in the team who would love to have Madders’ self-belief in their own game and he can help in that area. His season has been pretty decent. He had a little bit of a flat spot. I think we did as a team as well, but he’s in a good space.”