Why James Maddison needs to start for England
The nation’s pleas were answered last Monday when Gareth Southgate finally recalled James Maddison to his England squad ahead of the Qatar World Cup.
The 25-year-old has been in inspired form over the past two seasons for Leicester City and has been constantly knocking on the door to earn his second cap for his country.
Gareth has done the right thing in calling Maddison up, but he must now show his faith in the Foxes ace and start him at the earliest possible point.
Maddison brings something that this current England squad lacks, and that is creativity in abundance. The midfielder has scored seven goals and registered four assists in 14 league games for the Foxes so far and has been one of the leagues standout players by a country mile.
England are coming into the World Cup winless in their last six games, three of which they failed to score in. They desperately need Maddison’s spark.
The Three Lions undoubtedly have hugely talented players at their disposal including the likes of Phil Foden, Mason Mount and Bukayo Saka, but they have failed to truly show their worth for their country consistently.
This season Maddison has averaged 3.0 shots and 2.4 key passes per game, higher than Foden (1.9 and 1.5), Mount (1.6 and 1.3) and Saka (2.1 and 2.1).
Stats don’t necessarily show everything, but they do show that Maddison will bring a massive increase in creativity – he isn’t afraid to take a shot or to try that defense splitting pass and England will need that if they are to go far.
The obvious negative currently is that Maddison has picked up a knock in training and won’t be in the squad for England’s opener against Iran later today. However, this shouldn’t stop Southgate from bringing the 25-year-old in and the next possible opportunity.
⚔️ Official line-ups#ENG and #IRN will play the first match of the Group 🅱️ in less than an hour!
📲 Follow the #FIFAWorldCup action live on @SportsGazette! pic.twitter.com/54IopQOS0m— Sports Gazette (@SportsGazette) November 21, 2022
Southgate has opted for a 4-3-3 against Iran which will be music to the ears of both England fans and Maddison who has been operating either as the creative midfielder or as a right winger for Leicester City this season.
This formation will suit the former Norwich City man perfectly. So Gareth, do the right thing and get James Maddison playing!
