James Maddison has said he would have given up penalty duty to Richarlison against AZ Alkmaar even if he wasn’t captain.
Maddison was wearing the armband on the night as Ange Postecoglou heavily rotated his squad.
In the end, a 53rd-minute Richarlison spot-kick was the only difference between the two sides.
However, the goal only came after the Brazilian forward had an extended disagreement with Maddison over who should take the penalty.
Maddison initially asserted his dominance and took the ball, but before he put it down on the spot, he had a change of heart and gave it back to Richarlison.
There was plenty of pressure on the former Everton man to deliver after the back and forth but, thankfully, he kept his composure to beat AZ goalkeeper Rome Owusu-Oduro.
James Maddison explains Richarlison penalty decision
Spurs legend Glenn Hoddle wasn’t too impressed with the penalty squabble.
“The fact Richarlison scored [the penalty] is great and that is the difference between winning the game but I don’t know, it is a bit unprofessional [to take it off designated penalty taker, James Maddison],” the former England manager told TNT Sports (via BBC Sport).
“If he’s taken off or he’s injured then there might be a scenario where you leave it to the players, but it only works out if you score.”
However, Maddison says he would have taken the same decision even if he wasn’t captain, more interested in making sure Richarlison scores his first goal back from injury than boosting his own goalscoring figures.
“Initially we both wanted to take it. I’m a senior player, I was captain today, I was going to take it, but I thought Richarlison has come back from an injury, it’s difficult for a striker – a first goal gives confidence,” Maddison explained.
“It was a split-second decision to let him take it. [It’s] leadership, obviously I wore the armband but even if I wasn’t the captain I would still like to think I would make a decision that is best for the team. Hopefully, that gives him a big boost.”