Jermain Defoe believes that one Tottenham star is criminally underrated, insisting that the player’s quality is apparent every single time he makes his way onto the pitch.
Only a handful of Tottenham Hotspur players can come out of this season with any credit: Dejan Kulusevski, Djed Spence, Archie Gray, Lucas Bergvall and perhaps Dominic Solanke.
Barring these players, almost all Spurs players have had an underwhelming season, with injuries preventing many of them from having the kind of impact they would have wanted.
However, James Maddison has quietly been having an impact on the side, with 11 goals and eight assists across all competitions so far, and Defoe believes that the former Leicester man does not get the flowers he deserves.
Jermain Defoe makes a surprising James Maddison claim
Maddison has come in for a lot of criticism from pundits over recent weeks, and the 28-year-old might feel hard done by, given that he has stepped up whenever he is fit.
Maddison’s Tottenham teammates have leapt to his defence over recent weeks, and Defoe has now done the same.
The former Spurs striker admitted that he would love to see the midfielder playing at his best and get back into the England squad.
When asked who the most underrated player in the Premier League is, Defoe told LiveScore: “Maybe James Maddison, you know. I think when we see when he does play for Tottenham the qualities that he brings.
“I would just love to see him back in the England squad and trying to get in the England team. He missed out on the Euros which was obviously disappointing for him, but I think the best version of James Maddison can play for England.”
Maddison explains why he does not mind being scapegoated
The 28-year-old has good reason to feel hard done by as he is usually one of the first to be scrutinised when things go wrong for Tottenham.
However, Maddison insisted last month that he does not mind being scapegoated by pundits, remarking that he can handle the criticism.
The Spurs vice-captain stated that he is happy to be the lightning rod for criticism if it means that the younger players in the Tottenham squad are spared.