Pundit shares bizarre ‘observation’ on what Maddison has been poor at for Spurs

According to Richard Keys, James Maddison still needs to improve on his set-piece work for Tottenham Hotspur, despite the midfielder already providing an assist this season from a free-kick.

In what has been a fantastic start to the season all around for Tottenham, one of the brightest sparks has been new signing James Maddison.

Ange Postecoglou has made a huge impact in the early days of his tenure as Spurs boss, instilling a fresh sense of optimism around the club with his endearing manner and desire to play attacking football.

Maddison, a £40m signing this summer for Spurs, has been integral to this transition to a more free-flowing game for the Lilywhites.

The 26-year-old got off on the right foot by providing two assists in the first game of the season as Tottenham drew 2-2 with Brentford.

He then pulled the strings in midfield as Spurs defeated Manchester United, and bagged his first goal of the season in the win over Bournemouth at the weekend.

Maddison could be doing more, apparently

Despite all that, Richard Keys thinks there is still room for improvement when it comes to Maddison. Apparently, the playmaker needs to work on his set-piece delivery, which is an odd statement, given his first assist of the season was a brilliant free-kick for Cristian Romero to head home.

Keys wrote on his website: “It’s early days, but it’s been a really good start. I’ve got just one observation – as good as Maddison has been in open play – his set-piece delivery has been poor. He’s got to sort that out. I’m sure he will. He’s a [Coventry] kid done good.”

Spurs Web Opinion

I cannot recall one set-piece of Maddison’s that has been particularly ‘poor’ at all this season, so I’m not quite sure what Richard Keys is talking about.

It’s a bizarre statement to make about a player who has performed so brilliantly, that it just feels like nitpicking for the sake of having something to say. Keep doing what you are doing, Madders!