Tottenham Hotspur star attacking midfielder James Maddison has not yet started a game since tearing his ACL at the end of the 2024/25 Premier League season, though he did make appearances off the bench at the end of the 2025/26 campaign during Spurs relegation battle.
But just before he could get healthy enough to start a game in the 2026/27 season, Maddison went down with another injury, dislocating his shoulder against Brentford on Matchday 1. While Maddison's injury does not seem to be serious, as once feared, it is going to take him a couple of weeks to return from the ailment - and a little more time to feel like himself again.
At least, that is what Tottenham manager Roberto De Zerbi is admitting, too, as he got brutally honest about Madders before the Saturday game against Newcastle United in the Premier League, which Sprus also lost 2-0.
James Maddison still needs time to get to his best
De Zerbi said that it will take three to four weeks for James Maddison to be back to his best. The Tottenham Hotspur manager said of his veteran No. 10, via Spurs Army, "We have to work consistently for three or four weeks and then he is a different player. He is then a different player on the pitch, outside the pitch, as a personality, as an experience. He's a very positive guy and we are lucky to have James in our team."
Those are definitely kind words from Roberto De Zerbi on Maddison, who has admittedly been a bit of a disappointment for Tottenham lately, not even including the injury absences. But Maddison is very important to Tottenham, and without him at his best in that creative role, especially with Xavi Simons out with his own ACL tear, Tottenham have definitely suffered.
De Zerbi is wise for setting more realistic expectations here. Maddison is getting older and coming off a major injury and now coming off a minor one. He still needs time to get fit and click, and Tottenham fans could really see that on the pitch to start the season; Maddison was not quite as sharp on Matchday 1 against Brentford before that hard fall took out his shoulder.
Spurs need Omar Marmoush, Savio, and Mohammed Kudus to be fed more chances on a consistent basis as a front line, and hopefully, it will only take those few weeks for Maddison to get back on track; Spurs are hemorrhaging games here.
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