Tottenham midfielder once again not called up for international duty

Tottenham midfielder James Maddison's international frustrations continue after he was again not named in interim manager Lee Carsley's squad for Nations League fixtures at home to Greece and away to Finland later this month.

The Spurs number ten was not named in the squad for the European Championships, nor for Carsley's first squad - making it three snubs in a row for the 27-year-old.

On this occasion he can feel more aggrieved than the previous two times, you feel. Maddison has been thriving in this 'double 8' setup along with Dejan Kulusevski. He helped change the game against Coventry City, before scoring and playing fantastically well against Brentford, before a sublime all-round display in the win over Manchester United at the weekend.

Tottenham midfielder once again not called up for international duty

The issue is that England have an embarrassment of riches in his position. They have called up Jude Bellingham (who was injured for the last squad), Phil Foden, Conor Gallagher, Morgan Gibbs-White, and Angel Gomes who can play in the number ten position.

However, two caveats. Firstly, Maddison, as touched on above - has shown how well he can play in a deeper position, so you'd think he could be considered there for England. In the 'double pivot,' there is only really Declan Rice, Kobbie Mainoo, and Angel Gomes (who can play further up as mentioned above). Second of all, it's hard to argue against the Spurs midfielder deserving a call-up over Gibbs-White in general, and he can feel pretty aggrieved not to have been.

The good news is, albeit Maddison will not want to hear it, is that the midfielder can be fully fit and fresh after the break, where Spurs will play four games in 11 days, and seven games in the three-week period before the final break of the calendar year.

Hopefully we see Maddison take his frustration out on Brighton and Hove Albion this Sunday.