Reports have now revealed how likely it is that James Maddison will feature for Tottenham Hotspur this season following his return to first-team training.
Tottenham Hotspur simply need all the help they can get in what is the crunch time of the Premier League season, as they battle to beat relegation.
However, injuries have not done the Lilywhites any favours, as they are set to be without at least eight players in their clash against Brighton and Hove Albion this weekend.
Cristian Romero became the latest to join the treatment table, alongside Mohammed Kudus, who was nearing a return but suffered a setback before Spurs’ last outing against Sunderland.
Tottenham boost as Rodrigo Bentancur returns while James Maddison recovery continues
Lucky for Tottenham, though, help does seem to be on the way, with injured stars Rodrigo Bentancur and James Maddison returning to training ahead of the Premier League run-in.
Spurs fans believe Bentancur will be crucial for them, while many are eager to see Maddison return to a team that has struggled for creativity for most of the season.
But with the Englishman only just recovering from an ACL injury, one he picked up back in August in a pre-season game, it seems rather unlikely that he will play a competitive match for Spurs this campaign.
Football.london has now revealed that caution has been urged around Maddison, with no expectation that he is about to step back into Premier League football at the moment.
It is explained that his return to first-team training with his teammates is simply part of his reintegration at this stage of rehabilitation.
Spurs must remain cautious with James Maddison recovery timeline
ACL injuries often take time to recover from, and Tottenham fans could look at how long it took other Spurs players to return after suffering a similar injury.
For Radu Dragusin, who suffered his ACL injury early in 2025, it took the Romanian the best part of 11 months before he returned to the pitch in a competitive game for Tottenham, only doing so this year.
In fact, before making his Premier League return, Dragusin featured in a few behind-closed-doors matches to build his fitness back up.
Based on that timeline, Maddison could be two and a half months away from a return, which effectively rules him out for the remainder of this season.
We also have Rodrigo Bentancur, who suffered an ACL injury back in 2023, with his return to training coming just shy of eight and a half months after suffering the injury – quite similar to Maddison.
However, after a few competitive appearances, the Uruguayan did suffer another setback. Although there is some solace in the fact that his return was quicker than Dragusin’s.
That does hint that Maddison could still feature this campaign if he mirrors Bentancur’s recovery.