Maddison back in training ahead of FA Cup match

After getting struck by injury in November during the 4-1 loss to Chelsea, James Maddison is finally returning to training. The midfielder was recently featured on the club's social media accounts as he gleefully rejoined the team on the training ground.

This is a serious lift for Ange Postecoglou as he gears up for another clash with Manchester City, this time in the FA Cup. Maddison was out injured for the first game of the tournament, a 1-0 win against Burnley that Pedro Porro barely rescued after a sublime goal from outside the box.

With the injury bug plaguing Spurs right now, getting back key players will greatly help them in the second half of the season.

Despite Maddison's long spell off the pitch, Spurs fared decently in the Premier League and FA Cup. Dejan Kulusevski and Giovani Lo Celso split time as the creative force of the midfield, both contributing goals and assists to pick up crucial points. With Lo Celso now out accompanied by a hamstring problem, Maddison's return to training will be paramount. Now, Dejan Kulusevski will likely feature out wide once again, but supporters could see a midfield tandem of the Swede and Englishman if Postecoglou feels like switching things up.

No official team announcements have been made yet. Therefore, it's unknown if Maddison will start against City or feature as an impact sub. He is still working his way back to full fitness, but as we saw with Micky van de Ven, Cristian Romero, and Rodrigo Bentancur at the match against Manchester United two weeks ago, these players will give an arm and a leg to play for Ange. Maddison might be itching to get back to action after so much time out.

This was the longest injury of Maddison's career, and he was not happy about it.

Despite enjoying himself at the World Darts Championship, where he and some fans had a bit of a banter about North London football, he was gutted to be away for so long.

Madders was clearly overjoyed to see his teammates again, sharing a bit of banter with Pedro Porro after the right-back's countryman Carlos Alcarez was eliminated in the quarterfinals of the Australian Open.

Fans will be excited to see Maddison return to action, especially with club captain Son Heung-min still with South Korea at the Asian Cup. It may boost the attack needs, as the goal-scoring prowess of the squad hasn't been at full strength with Son gone, Alejo Veliz injured, and Brennan Johnson struggling to find the back of the net.

Richarlison has scored six goals in six games, but having more passes provided by Maddison could boost those numbers. Timo Werner, having just arrived on loan, will be hungry for more chances in the box. All in all, the return of the second vice-captain will go a long way with leadership in both the dressing room and out on the pitch.