- Maddison makes Spurs debut at Brentford
- Takes Kane’s number 10 shirt
- Striker joined Bayern on Saturday
WHAT HAPPENED? Maddison swapped Leicester City for Tottenham in late June on a five-year deal for £40 million ($50.7m). The 26-year-old, who will make his Spurs debut against Brentford today, scored 55 goals and provided 41 assists in a five-year stint at the Foxes, who were relegated last term, and now he hopes he can use that creativity at the north London club. The England international has also taken the No.10 shirt following Harry Kane’s move to Bayern Munich for 100 million euros (£86.4m/$109m) plus add-ons.
WHAT THEY SAID: Speaking at a TNT Sports event last week before Kane’s departure, Maddison said: “When I was speaking to my agent about moving clubs and you come to a place where you need to make decisions, where you want to go and what you think fits best, I could actually see myself playing for Spurs.
“There’s a little window for me at Tottenham Hotspur, a creative player that they’ve always had, maybe not had in recent years. I could definitely see myself, when making the decision, playing for Tottenham, in that kit, in that stadium and being the creative player I know I can be.
“I’ve always had a strong self belief and I’ll always back myself and my own ability to succeed. It hasn’t failed me so far so I will continue to have that mindset and attitude. I just saw myself playing at Tottenham.”
THE BIGGER PICTURE: Tottenham are in something of a new era after Kane’s exit. The 30-year-old was the club’s record goalscorer but now they have to find a way to survive without him under new manager Ange Postecoglou. The England captain was a goals and assists machine so the likes of Maddison and Son Heung-min need to step up in his absence.
