Tottenham star James Maddison was missing from the entire pre-season tour of New Zealand and Australia.
After a disastrous season last term, which almost saw Tottenham Hotspur relegated from the Premier League, Roberto De Zerbi is now overseeing a squad rebuild. Six signings have been made, and it will take a couple of new additions to their attacking unit to take Spurs back towards the top end of the Premier League standings following back-to-back 17th-place finishes.
Outgoings are set to happen as well, with the futures of several players at the club in doubt. Cristian Romero has been heavily linked with a move to Inter Milan lately. Amid speculation surrounding Romero’s future, Roberto De Zerbi has reportedly identified James Maddison as Tottenham’s new skipper.
James Maddison endured a forgettable 2025. He missed the Europa League final success over Manchester United in Bilbao in May 2025 after suffering an MCL injury. After a summer-long lay-off, the creative midfielder returned and played against Newcastle United in a pre-season friendly in Seoul on August 3rd until ACL disaster struck. This sidelined him for the next nine months.
The England international returned to fitness during the crucial relegation run-in, managing just three appearances. De Zerbi managed James Maddison’s fitness well and handed him few opportunities off the bench, as Spurs beat the dreaded drop on the final day of the season.
Spurs podcaster shoots James Maddison warning ahead of new season
Maddison has missed both the friendlies against FC Auckland and Sydney FC in the pre-season tour, with De Zerbi confirming earlier this week that he was managing his fitness. Rather than risk aggravating minor physical strains during intense training sessions, De Zerbi and his coaching staff decided to manage the player’s recovery prudently.
Now, famous Spurs podcast Lilywhite Rose owner John Wenham has issued a warning to Tottenham regarding Maddison. He believes that it is key for the creative midfielder to return to fitness shortly and get minutes under his belt during the pre-season; otherwise, it will be extremely concerning heading into the 2026/27 campaign.
“It is frustrating that James Maddison has gone on the tour, and not only in the first tour game against Auckland, but also the friendly against MK Dons, that he didn’t feature at all,” John Wenham exclusively told Tottenham News.
“Towards the back end of last season, he was making a few appearances. I was hoping that this pre-season he’d be ready from the first game to be able to contribute, having had the whole summer off as well, building on his fitness, so I’m hopeful he will feature in these next few friendlies we’ve got out in Australia.
“If he doesn’t, then that is a serious concern.”
Maddison must get minutes vs. Chelsea
Maddison has not featured in any pre-season friendly thus far. Having travelled with the squad for the Sydney Super Cup, there was hope that he would get some minutes in his tank in a bid to return to fitness ahead of the new season.
The trip away from North London represented a massive opportunity for the 29-year-old to build essential fitness ahead of August. Enduring intensive training sessions builds the physical resilience strictly required for domestic success, but Maddison turned out to be a mere spectator from the bench.
With Xavi Simons out with an ACL injury, and no timeframe put on Dejan Kulusevski’s return from fitness, Maddison knows the heavy creative burden rests firmly on his shoulders this crucial year. Hopefully, the Englishman gets some minutes against Chelsea in the next friendly on August 1.
