Pundit claims West Ham midfielder is better than Tottenham’s James Maddison

Former West Ham defender turned pundit, Anton Ferdinand, has claimed Lucas Paqueta is a better player than Tottenham Hotspur star, James Maddison.

There is no doubting James Maddison has had a profound impact on the fortunes of Tottenham since he joined the club last summer from relegated Leicester City.

With four goals and eight assists in his first season for Spurs so far (Transfermarkt), it’s safe to say Maddison has been a successful addition to Ange Postecoglou‘s squad.

Injury issues have held Maddison back somewhat this term, but the England international has pulled the strings every time he has been involved and is even one of Postecoglou’s vice-captains at Spurs.

Meanwhile, Hammers midfielder, Lucas Paqueta, has had a decent season himself. The Brazilian has three goals and five assists in the Premier League, with a further four goals in the Europa League (Transfermarkt).

Is Lucas Paqueta better than James Maddison?

Both players are top talents, then, but who is better? According to Anton Ferdinand, if he had to pick one player for his team, Paqueta would get the nod ahead of Maddison.

He told The Take On: “He’s a joke. The eye test. Watch him. [Paqueta] is a joke. And he can play the eight as well. I think [Maddison]’s tops. I really do. But Man City don’t want James Maddison, do they? They want Paqueta. I would rather have Paqueta in my team.”

Spurs Web Opinion

Assessing players simply based on who Manchester City want to sign is a really unusual and fallible method for determining which players are better or worse than one another.

For a start, City actually did want to sign Maddison before he joined Spurs, and the only reason they’re not looking at him now is because he wouldn’t leave after just one year in North London.

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