Ange Postecoglou, Manager of Tottenham Hotspur, interacts with Dominic Solanke of Tottenham Hotspur following the Premier League match between Manc...
Ange Postecoglou, Manager of Tottenham Hotspur, interacts with Dominic Solanke of Tottenham Hotspur following the Premier League match between Manc...
Tottenham Hotspur emphatically ended a run of six games without a win as they thrashed Southampton 5-0 with one of their key players impressing Ange Postecoglou.
Tottenham scored five goals in the first half for the first time in a Premier League match as they ran riot at St Mary’s. Postecoglou’s team took their foot off the gas in the second half having found themselves four goals to good within the first 25 minutes
With two huge games approaching in Manchester United and Liverpool, the Australian manager will be delighted to see one of his key players starting to shine again just at the right moment.
James Maddison of Tottenham Hotspur celebrates after the Premier League match between Southampton FC and Tottenham Hotspur FC at St Mary's Stadium...
Photo by Catherine Ivill – AMA/Getty Images
James Maddison takes goal tally level with Ollie Watkins and Alexander Isak
James Maddison produced one of his best displays of the season for Tottenham as he netted a brace in their 5-0 win over Southampton. There is certainly the case that Russell Martin’s side were just too easy to play against, but the 28-year-old just looked like a man on a mission.
Maddison has been strongly criticised this campaign and looked to have lost his place in the Spurs team. However, Postecoglou will be unable to overlook him when picking his team for the Carabao Cup tie with Manchester United on Thursday.
Despite everything said about him, the midfielder has been quietly putting together a strong season in terms of goal involvements. Maddison has 12 goals and assists in all competitions which is more than Bruno Fernandes and Martin Odegaard.
Meanwhile, the £40M ace has taken his Premier League goal tally to seven in 13 starts, moving him level with the likes of Alexander Isak and Ollie Watkins. These are numbers that cannot be ignored and show just how important he can be for Tottenham’s season. If Postecoglou stands any chance of getting Spurs back into the top four, Maddison will be key.
What Ange Postecoglou said about James Maddison vs Southampton
Postecoglou was delighted with Heung-min Son and Maddison for the way in which they stood up when Tottenham really needed them. Son became Tottenham’s player with the most assists in the Premier League as he came away from the South Coast with a goal and two assists.
Postceoglou told the media: “They were brilliant. I think they sensed they needed to tonight. We are just spread so thin that we’re asking young players and players who haven’t played a lot and others who have been playing all the time to go out there and still try to play to our identity, play the football we want to.
“I thought they both were the catalyst for that tonight, with both the football but also their mindset just going out there.”
Elsewhere, Maddison earned praise from Joe Cole who claimed that the 28-year-old was sublime against the Saints and helped to make Postecoglou’s team tick.