Tottenham staff blown away by £170k-a-week player after his performance against them last season

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Tottenham Hotspur staff were left stunned by how well James Maddison played against them last season.

A report from The Athletic has highlighted what impressed coaches at Spurs about the 26-year-old.

Tottenham will be delighted that they’ve secured their second signing of the summer.

Although they had been interested in James Maddison for some time, the transfer went through quickly after submitting a £40m bid.

The likes of Newcastle and Manchester City were both keen on the £170k-a-week playmaker, but he’ll be playing his football in North London next season.

Tottenham fans will have been very impressed by what they saw of Maddison last season.

He played an instrumental role in Leicester’s 4-1 win over Spurs in February.

Antonio Conte’s spell in charge was ending, and Maddison recorded a goal and an assist.

However, Tottenham staff were very impressed with Maddison even during Leicester’s 6-2 defeat last season.

He shone in a side that ultimately wasn’t good enough to stay in the Premier League.

Tottenham staff impressed with Maddison last season

The report from The Athletic suggests Tottenham were impressed with how Maddison ‘ran the game, constantly linking the play and scoring a stunning goal’.

Despite the heavy defeat, Maddison didn’t shy away from the ball and ‘evoked memories for others of the great Luka Modric’s days at White Hart Lane’.

It is high praise indeed to compare Maddison to the great Luka Modric.

The Croatian legend is arguably one of the finest players to ever wear a Tottenham shirt.

Spurs have been missing a creative outlet in midfield ever since Cristian Eriksen left the club.

Maddison has big shoes to fill in that respect but has proved he can provide goals and assists in the Premier League.

Ange Postecolgou and his staff at Tottenham will know how important Maddison will be to their tactical set-up this season.

If the Australian coach reverts to his usual attacking 4-3-3 formation then Maddison will be responsible for creating plenty of chances.

It’s something he’s certainly capable of doing and he’ll now have a full pre-season to get accustomed with his new teammates and work out how best to link up with them.