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Tottenham star bites back at talkSPORT pundit; cashes in receipt
James Maddison took to social media to hit back at pundit Simon Jordan after becoming European champions with Tottenham
Tottenham Hotspur reached the promised land on May 21 and clinched the Europa League trophy by beating Manchester United 1-0 in the final in Bilbao.
Brennan Johnson’s scrappy first-half goal was enough to secure a win for Spurs, sealing a night for Ange Postecoglou’s side. The result ended the club’s 17-year trophy drought and marked their first piece of silverware since lifting the League Cup back in 2008. The victory at the San Mames Stadium also fulfilled the Australian tactician’s bold promise to deliver a trophy in an underwhelming season at White Hart Lane.
With that, he managed to silence his naysayers from large sections of the media and punditry. A lot had been made of the Lilywhites‘ trophy drought and barely anyone gave Ange Postecoglou a chance to help them win one during his tenure. Many players also bore the brunt from the fans, media and pundits, a tad too harshly at times. And one of them was James Maddison.
James Maddison has had a tough second season in North London. Despite an inconsistent campaign, he has been one of the most creative players for Ange’s team, delivering some biggest moments and supplying 12 goals and 11 assists in 45 matches across all competitions. The Englishman played an instrumental role in Spurs reaching the Europa League final.
The 28-year-old was unfortunate to miss out on the final after suffering a serious knee injury that has ruled him out of action for up to three months. After the European triumph, Maddison did not forget to dig out an old video of talkSPORT pundit Simon Jordan criticising him. While Jordan admitted Maddison is a good player, he did not think that the Coventry-born talent was the kind of signing that would guide Tottenham to a trophy.
Maddison wrote on his official X account, sharing the clip of Jordan: “Bookmarked it. Knew it would come in handy.”
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- David Ornstein says Ange Postecoglou wouldn’t be surprised if Tottenham sacked him
- Tottenham confident of landing £50m Crystal Palace star after UCL qualification
Maddison is a colourful character in the Tottenham squad, both on and off the pitch. The England international was strongly criticised by ex-Manchester United skipper Roy Keane earlier this campaign for his fluctuating performance levels. His riposte to Keane was a darts celebration after scoring the only goal in Tottenham’s 1-0 home win over Man United in February.
Having now become a European champion with Tottenham, the Englishman has not held back himself and replied to Jordan in perhaps a fitting way. While many will feel it is churlish from Maddison to post a video on X as he was not even involved in the final in Bilbao, players are human beings and sometimes it is perfectly fine to stand up and defend themselves from over the top criticism—be it on the pitch or on social media.
