Tottenham Hotspur have completed the signing of James Maddison from Leicester City for £40m.
The 26-year-old scored 10 goals and contributed nine assists in 30 Premier League appearances last season, despite playing for a struggling Foxes side that eventually suffered relegation.
Maddison has been a key Fantasy Premier League (FPL) target in recent seasons but what does his move to Spurs mean for his FPL prospects?
We’ll take a look in this Moving Target piece, where we have included data and images taken from our Premium Members Area.
MADDISON’S FPL HISTORY
| Season | Starts (sub apps) | Minutes | Goals | Assists | Bonus | FPL points |
| 2022/23 | 28 (2) | 2479 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 135 |
| 2021/22 | 28 (7) | 2454 | 12 | 11 | 24 | 181 |
| 2020/21 | 24 (7) | 2093 | 8 | 7 | 12 | 133 |
| 2019/20 | 29 (2) | 2624 | 6 | 5 | 14 | 125 |
| 2018/19 | 35 (1) | 2831 | 7 | 7 | 12 | 137 |
Maddison, who arrived from Norwich City in 2018, made 163 Premier League appearances for Leicester, scoring 43 goals and recording 39 assists.
57 of those attacking returns have arrived in his past three Premier League seasons, with 2021/22 his most productive FPL campaign to date.
However, his returns in FPL have been very good for a sustained period now. This is his starting record since Gameweek 13 of 2021/22, when he recovered from a slow beginning to consistently rack up the points.
| Starts | 48 |
| Goals | 21 |
| Assists | 20 |
| Bonus | 32 |
| FPL points | 290 |
| FPL points per start | 6.1 |
In 2022/23, Maddison was unable to prevent Leicester from suffering relegation but enjoyed a solid campaign that saw him earn a call-up to England’s World Cup squad, scoring 10 goals and providing nine assists from midfield.
PLAYING STYLE/STATS
“I like the fact he finds those pockets of space. He turns, he plays forward, and not a lot of players play forward in this day and age.” – Gareth Southgate, England manager
In 2022/23, Maddison has been used as a no. 8, off the right of the front three and in behind the main striker as a no. 10, which is arguably his best position.
He is an unpredictable footballer, often attempting the opposite of what you’d expect, and is always looking to create with lots of forward passes. Comfortable using either foot, he isn’t blessed with pace or power, but he’s happy to go past opposition players, with excellent technique and passing ability.
“One player I’m crazy about for England… James Maddison. He’s an authentic footballer — more of a street product than an academy product. He’s daring. He has nerve. A manager can tell him to do A, but if he believes B is the right option, he’ll do B. I just love this. Any idea that comes into James Maddison’s head is 100-times better than any idea you will find at any coaching conference.” – Juan Lillo, Pep Guardiola’s former Manchester City assistant
Statistically, he is one of the most dangerous midfielders in the Premier League. If we look at the numbers from the past season, he ranks eighth in his position in terms of the total number of chances created (69) and joint-seventh for big chances created (12), despite playing in a dysfunctional Leicester team.
However, Maddison isn’t just a player that can pull the strings. He loves shooting, too, registering 81 shots in 2022/23, a total that placed him seventh among all FPL midfielders. Below is his shot map, with his efforts on target in green. They are mostly outside of the box but he is more than capable of scoring goals from distance.
Maddison is also renowned as a set-piece specialist. He’s scored eight goals directly from free-kicks for Leicester, while only Trent Alexander-Arnold and James Ward-Prowse generated more expected assists (xA) from dead-ball situations in 2022/23.
WHERE MADDISON FITS IN AT SPURS
Maddison will instantly add something Spurs’ midfield currently lacks: creativity.
All of their current options are more box-to-box, defensive types, like Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, Rodrigo Bentancur, Oliver Skipp and Yves Bissouma, who collectively created just 59 chances last season, 10 fewer than Maddison’s individual tally. As such, Maddison will play a key role in Spurs’ new-look team as their key creator.
Ange Postecoglou prefers a 4-3-3 formation, which you can read more about here, a shape Maddison can easily fit into as a no. 8. It often leans towards a 4-2-3-1 anyway, so a midfield three of Bissouma, Bentancur and Maddison – in a hybrid 8/10 role – has the potential to function very well.
During his final season at Celtic, Postecoglou spoke about the importance of a no. 10 to his approach, although his quote also suggests Maddison’s skillset could occasionally be used out wide, in unique circumstances dictated by the opposition.
“… if you look at our team now I’ve got four to five wingers and they’re all wingers but they’ve all got different qualities. Some have speed, some are better on the dribble, others are just great at getting on the end of things so depending on who we play it’s then about team selection.
It’s the same with the midfield dynamic. Do I need two more dynamic midfield players? Do I need two 10s? Do I need an eight and a 10? I’ve tried to build teams where we’ll play our 4-3-3 but that can look so different depending on the 11 I put out there. That way we don’t have to change too many fundamentals in terms of our approach but having those players will mean that we change, it tweaks us just naturally.” – Ange Postecoglou
THE FPL PROSPECTS
Maddison’s arrival comes after a disappointing season for Tottenham, as they finished eighth in the Premier League and failed to qualify for any European competition.
However, they could be a very different outfit in 2023/24, with new boss Postecoglou taking charge. His arrival should, in theory, see Spurs score more goals and his attacking brand of football will suit Maddison, who immediately brings creativity.
Complementing an attack that already boasts Harry Kane, Son Heung-min, Dejan Kulusevski and Richarlison, the potential is clear, although the England captain’s future remains in doubt. If he stays, Kane and Son could reach even greater heights with Maddison pulling the strings.
Maddison will probably be priced up around £8.0m in FPL, so expect interest to pick up in Gameweek 3 when Spurs face Bournemouth, plus newly-promoted Burnley and Sheffield United, in quick succession.
Spurs won’t have any European commitments to worry about after, either, allowing Postecoglou further time on the training pitch. That’s important, too, as it could take a while to instill his ideas, which are very different from his predecessor Antonio Conte’s.
Spurs are getting a player at their peak who is proven to be one of the best creators in the Premier League. If he is handed a prominent role on set-pieces and Spurs can rediscover their swagger, Maddison could become one of the best mid-price midfielders to own in FPL next season.
We can, of course, look to pre-season for clues as to how Spurs will perform. Postecoglou will take his new side back to his native Australia for pre-season training and a friendly against West Ham United on 18 July, before facing Maddison’s former club Leicester, Roma and Shakhtar Donetsk.
Any information we learn from these friendlies will be covered here, be it line-ups, goals, assists or wider Fantasy talking points.
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