Gareth Southgate has delivered his verdict on Tottenham Hotspur star James Maddison’s cameo display for England last night.
James Maddison managed just 17 minutes during two friendlies for England over the past week.
The 27-year-old was an unused substitute in the 1-0 defeat to Brazil over the weekend and Gareth Southgate opted for Kobbie Mainoo over the Tottenham star last night.
It’s led to the likes of Chris Sutton questioning why Southgate isn’t using the midfielder more often.
Nevertheless, Maddison got his last chance to impress ahead of the Euros last night as he replaced Mainoo in the 73rd minute.
With England trailing 2-1 at the time, the Spurs star provided a real moment of quality to help Southgate’s men avoid defeat.
Maddison produced an assist with the outside of his boot to set up Jude Bellingham for a simple finish. And Southgate feels the midfielder made a good impact on the game after coming on.
Southgate delivers verdict on Maddison after England vs Belgium
Speaking beIN SPORTS, Southgate praised Maddison after a bright cameo display and a vital assist.
“I thought James Maddison when he came on had a very good impact,” the England boss said.
“Jarrod Bowen had an excellent game. So there were a lot of very, very good performances.”
Maddison’s England stats
Surprisingly, Maddison has only earned six caps for England despite posting exceptional numbers in the Premier League over the years.
His assist for Bellingham last night was his first goal involvement in an England shirt as he’s mainly been limited to appearances off the left-hand side.
Southgate clearly prefers to operate with two deeper-lying midfielders and with Bellingham excelling in the advanced role, Maddison faces a difficult task when it comes to breaking into the starting XI.
Many fans would love to see the Spurs star play alongside Declan Rice and Bellingham in the middle of the park.
Despite his lack of minutes over the past week, Maddison showed exactly what can offer in the final third last night and will hope his cameo is enough to earn him a place at the Euros this summer.
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