Tottenham Hotspur signed James Maddison from Leicester City during the summer transfer window.
The 26-year-old midfielder completed a £40 million move to the north London club and he has been outstanding for them so far. The midfielder has picked up 3 goals and 5 assists in 12 matches across all competitions and he has established himself as an indispensable asset for manager Ange Postecoglou.
The newly appointed Spurs manager chose Maddison as one of the vice-captains in the squad immediately after his arrival. Son Heung-min was chosen as the captain and Maddison is one of the vice-captains along with Cristian Romero.
The 26-year-old midfielder has now revealed that Postecoglou’s decision surprised him.
Maddison claims that it is a great honour to bag a leadership role at such a big club and the recognition from the manager reflected his faith in the player.
Speaking in a Q&A posted on Spurs’ official account, Maddison said: “Well, I was taken aback. Obviously, I was very surprised. The gaffer hadn’t said anything to me previously. He announced that Sonny was the captain, and me and Cuti were the vice-captains of the group. I was a little bit taken aback.
“Obviously honoured, a great honour. Just because I’m a new player. I always like to think that I’ve got good leadership skills and will carry myself in the way of a leader.
“But to get that recognition from the manager, and for him to put that trust in me in that role to be captain, me or Cuti whenever Son is absent, or even just be a leader around the group that he feels that I’m capable of doing that, yeah, was very honoured.”
The midfielder has certainly lived up to the expectations so far and the fans will be hoping that he can return to action soon.
The 26-year-old recently picked up an injury and he will be out of action until the start of the new year.
It will be interesting to see how Tottenham fill the creative void left by him in their midfield over the next few weeks.
Spurs have started the season well and they will look to get back into the top four. It remains to be seen whether the likes of Maddison can guide them back to the Champions League.
