Tottenham Hotspur crashed to a 1-0 defeat against Arsenal in the North London derby earlier today.
Tottenham were expected to grind out a positive result at home in front of their own fans, but they have failed to deliver once again. Arsenal will be delighted with their performance in a big game.
The Gunners had multiple injury problems, but they have managed to get the job done and the win over Tottenham will certainly establish their title credentials.
Meanwhile, popular pundit Matt Upson has now highlighted the poor performance of Tottenham midfielder James Maddison in another big game.
James Maddison slammed for North London Derby performance
The England international, who joined the Lilywhites for a reported £40 million 14 months ago, has been heavily criticised for his tendency to go missing in certain games, and again, he was quite mediocre against Arsenal.
“James Maddison has had a quiet game,” Upson told BBC Sport.
“How often have we referred to anything he has done in this game? He has not been very effective with the ball at all.”
The 26-year-old midfielder is undoubtedly Tottenham’s creator in chief and they needed him to step up and deliver in the final third today. The North London outfit failed to create ample goalscoring opportunities, and Maddison will be thoroughly disappointed with his performance as well.
After an outstanding start to life at Tottenham since the £40 million move, his form dipped sharply during the second half of last season and he missed out on the chance to represent his country during Euro 2024 as a result of that. It will be interesting to see if he can bounce back strongly and contribute significantly in the big games.
Tottenham will need him to step up and deliver if they want to win trophies and finish in the top four this season.
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Ange has no plan B, plan A only works if Son, Maddison, Johnson, Solanke all perform effectively. At the moment they don’t. With Romero looking lost every time we defend a corner, we are always going to struggle and personally I think Ange is out of his depth. He was exceptionally rude to a female interviewer, but Aussies are not known for their manners and tact.