James Maddison believes that Tottenham have a special talent on their hands in Lucas Bergvall and revealed the big change he has noticed in the Swede since he arrived at the club last summer.
There have not been too many positives from a Spurs perspective this season, but one undoubtedly has been the growth of Bergvall.
Ange Postecoglou has been forced to throw the 19-year-old straight into the deep end due to Tottenham’s injury crisis, and the youngster has grabbed the opportunity with both hands, making himself undroppable.
Spurs fans on social media were overjoyed when Bergvall signed a new contract earlier this week, with many expecting him to be the engine of the club’s midfield for many years to come.
James Maddison is surprised by how quickly Lucas Bergvall has adapted
At the start of the season, Bergvall was primarily being used as a number ten by Postecoglou, which meant that he hardly ever played alongside Maddison.
However, that has changed over the last few months, with the teenager thriving in a deeper midfield role and dictating games consistently.
Maddison revealed that while the Swede’s enthusiasm was always apparent from pre-season, the youngster’s body has adapted quickly to the intensity of the Premier League.
When asked how Bergvall has developed in his first year in English football, the 28-year-old told Football.London: “He was very keen to start – he was very enthusiastic like a little bee! He was just everywhere – on the pre-season tour, you would turn the corner, and he was just there, happy. I guess that’s the youthfulness of him.
“He’s a brilliant player and a fantastic talent. Tottenham have done amazingly well to get him to the club and to get him to sign a new contract, which is brilliant for everyone at the club.
“He’s got some learning to do within the game, I guess, but he’s so young that that is fine. What he will have learned as well without even realising it … his journey this season which has just gone like that [points up] – it’s not been a gradual trajectory. He will have learned so much that next season he will be in a much better place in terms of what he has learned from the Premier League.
“When he first came in, he was a big, powerful boy, but I don’t think his body was up to the intensity of the league that we all know very well. Once he got to grips with that from playing so much because of the injuries he has probably caught up quicker than you would have expected.
“But the talent is there and he’s got a good head on his shoulders. He always means well and is always willing to learn.”
Maddison is impressed by Bergvall’s growing confidence at Tottenham
The Sweden international did look short of confidence at the start of the season, but he now appears completely at home in this high-pressure environment at N17.
James Maddison noted that the youngster is now not afraid to speak up and demand things from his more experienced teammates.
He added about Bergvall: “I always help him as much as I can because anyone who is willing to learn, you want the best for. He’s not someone who has come in, got straight into the team and tried to have himself a little bit.
“He’s kept grounded and he’s actually growing – I hear him demanding of other players and I love that. I love that he is in a place where he is confident enough to say to an older player, ‘come on’. I think that has obviously come from this season and the experience he has learned. So great future.”