Let your feet do the talking, Ange Postecoglou tells returning James Maddison

LONDON – Tottenham Hotspur welcomed playmaker James Maddison back to their starting line-up for the first time in nearly three months on Jan 31 and while he helped spark his side to a 3-2 English Premier League win over Brentford, he also got a ticking off from manager Ange Postecoglou.

Maddison, who suffered an ankle injury in November, was off the pace in the first half as a ragged Tottenham trailed 1-0, but looked more like his old self in a scintillating second-half display by the hosts.

Postecoglou accused his side of lacking discipline in the first half, as they were clearly rattled by a Brentford side who took the lead through Neal Maupay’s 15th-minute effort and seemed to get under the skin of Spurs.

“(Maddison) got more and more into the game and I think he’s one of the guilty ones who spent more time in the first half chatting to the ref than getting on the ball,” the manager said.

“That’s not what we want him to do. We want him to play football and in the second half, his quality shone through. And when he’s like that, and I’m sure that game will do him the world of good, it just gives us so much more flow.”

Maddison had a hand in Tottenham’s third goal in a devastating nine-minute spell which saw Destiny Udogie, Brennan Johnson and Richarlison score for a 3-1 lead.

Brentford’s other goal was scored by Ivan Toney, who made it two goals in two games since his return from an eight-month betting suspension.

“When they scored (early) we lost our way, we lost focus, I was a bit frustrated with our inability to stay disciplined,” added Postecoglou, whose side moved into fourth place in the Premier League table.

“We spent more time talking to the referee than playing the game. I was a bit frustrated we lost our real clear focus. But second half for 25 or 30 minutes we were outstanding, scored three great goals and probably should have more.”

With Maddison back, the treatment room emptying and several players soon to return from international duty, Postecoglou’s side look well-placed to challenge for a top-four finish in the Australian’s first season.

“We’ve been there or thereabouts the whole season, so it’s nothing different for us,” he said.

“There is still a lot of growth in this team and nights like tonight just shows me we still have a long way to go.

“Within that context, the fact this team still produces and gets results is a credit to them, but we need to keep improving in a whole lot of areas.” REUTERS