James Maddison: Creator Leicester’s playmaker on his dream of being Beckham 2.0
Having created more chances than Lionel Messi this season, it’s safe to say James Maddison has settled into Premier League life. Leicester’s fearless Fox reveals how getting clobbered in Scotland helped him earn an England call-up
The last time James Maddison was in an interview situation at Leicester’s Belvoir Drive training ground, Harry Maguire was the uneasy subject. Understandable, really, when you have the threat of aerial medicine balls hanging over your head during a television interview. “Just imagine if Jamie Vardy or Kasper Schmeichel were here for this,” he grimaces to Fourfourtwo as our snapper clicks away, nodding at the row of empty exercise bikes 20 yards away. “Thank god...”
Luckily for Maddison there’s no Maguire to repay the favour – the defender is celebrating the birth of his first child, as revealed in the players’ Whatsapp group – but the mischief is all in good nature anyway.
It’s indicative of a Leicester squad whose mood is bright right now. Brendan Rodgers’ arrival coincided with an immediate uplift in the Foxes’ fortunes, while Maddison has rekindled his stellar early-season form – so much, that only one player in Europe’s top five leagues, Atalanta’s Papu Gomez, has carved out more opportunities this term.
The midfielder arrives a little late to meet FFT – hair like that doesn’t do itself, you know – but after surviving the gaggle of young hopefuls flexing away in the gym during his photoshoot, he’s fine company when we sit down to chat. Maddison talks as he plays: confident beyond his years, with a swagger that earmarks him above his peers...
How do you reflect on your first Premier League season? I’ve loved it. I feel like I’ve learned a lot and really grown as a player getting to grips with the league and finding out what’s required to hit the top standard at this level. I’ve already got some great memories.
What’s surprised you the most? The biggest difference and change from the Championship is the pace and physicality of every player. You have to have a great touch every time you’re on the ball, otherwise it’s taken off you. I know it sounds like a cliché, but there’s no easy game here. You come up against teams down the bottom of the table and it’s tough, sometimes even tougher than when you play top-six sides, to be honest. It’s a bit of a weird dynamic.
Your debut came on the opening day of the season at Old Trafford. Were you star-struck? I wasn’t star-struck, but there was a moment when I came out to warm up and spotted all the television cameras around, and it hit me a bit – then you know that you’re in a different world. It was the opening game of the Premier League season and I remember thinking to myself, ‘Right, now it’s really time to kick on’. I just went out there and tried to do what I do.
Who’s been your hardest opponent so far? Paul Pogba and N’golo Kante, I’d have to say. Obviously the lads at Leicester know N’golo
really well. Somehow he just always manages to get close to you and wrap his legs around you – a bit like Wilfred Ndidi in training, actually.
So, you’ve created more chances than Lionel Messi this season… It’s flattering! But I play in attacking midfield so I’ve got to be creative, otherwise I wouldn’t be in the team. It’s nice to see stats like that, though, because I know I’m doing my job.
What’s required to be a top-class attacking midfielder in the Premier League? I wouldn’t say you have to be selfish, but you do have to be confident – and that’s one thing I’ve always been. You’ve got to believe in what you do and what got you to where you are, and keep doing that no matter where you are – in League One, Scotland or the Premier League. I’m not going to stop now.
Is it true that your dad creates compilations of you on Youtube? He’s a graphic designer who’s very good with computers, so he’s done a few! There was one he called, ‘A decade of development’ for my 10 years at Coventry, another when I was on loan at Aberdeen, and one when I was playing for Norwich. He loves it.
You were in Coventry’s first-team squad as a 16-year-old, so how has that shaped your journey so far? It was definitely a good thing getting in really early – that’s the goal, isn’t it? The earlier, the better. I’m 22 now, though I almost feel like a senior pro because I’ve played a lot of games. I’ve never been an under-23 player at a Premier League club, while there are other lads my age at Chelsea or Manchester City who were just playing kids’ football back then. Everyone has a different path, and there’s no right or wrong one, but that was mine and I’m glad about it.
Is it true that you turned down Liverpool to join Norwich in 2016? No, that’s not true. I was at Coventry and came through the academy system there, got into the first team and then moved on to Norwich when I was 19. You can’t believe everything you read out there… In your first full season at Norwich you were loaned to Aberdeen. Why? I’d already played in League One and felt like I’d ticked that box, so I didn’t want to go back to that level. I went to see Alex Neil and talked to him about my lack of action, so on deadline day I moved. It was the best option, playing against Celtic and Rangers in big games that I just wouldn’t have got elsewhere. I played in a cup final in front of 50,000 supporters. I was a confident 18-year-old at the time anyway, so I was happy to go away and live in Scotland on my own – that would never be a problem to me. I look back on my spell at Aberdeen with really fond memories.
You’ve always been fouled a lot. Did playing in Scotland help adapt to that? I think there was one game where I got into double figures for the amount of times I was fouled! [Laughs] It might even have broken an Aberdeen record, I seem to remember. So yes, it was very physical, but that’s what I wanted – to gain that experience of getting kicked and then getting back up again. With the type of player I am, I’m on the ball a lot and getting kicked. Defenders are trying to stop me from doing what I do – I understand it.
How did your £20 million move to Leicester finally come about? I’d obviously had a good season with Norwich in the Championship, so I kind of half-knew there’d be some interest. There was loads of speculation going around, but until you find out all the facts, you don’t have a decision to make. Once I’d heard from Leicester and then spoken to both the manager and [director of football] Jon Rudkin, my mind was made up. I knew I’d be able to thrive and connect with this group of players, so it was an easy call.
How come you, Ben Chilwell and Demarai Gray have such a bromance? [Laughs] We’re all the same age, and I played against them both as a kid with Coventry. I can remember Chilly as this stocky left-back – he was only about 15, but his legs were out here [gestures]. Dimi used to have a massive afro. When you’re young you always pick out the opposition players with certain features like that, because obviously you didn’t know them. “I wonder if that lad with the afro is playing…” We ended up playing for England Under-21s, so they helped me to settle in here. We’re all really good friends.
You’ve formed an effective partnership with Jamie Vardy this season, too… It definitely feels like we’ve got a really good chemistry. Jamie’s a great lad and we get on really well off the pitch, which does help. Vards comes alive when I get on the ball because he knows it’s my job to feed him. He makes my job much easier because his movement, pace and finishing are second to none in the Premier League, as we’ve witnessed over the last few years. He’s a joy to play with.
Why do you think it didn’t it work out for Claude Puel at Leicester? I’m not sure I’m the right person to answer that. I got on well with Claude and had a good relationship with him – he brought me to the club, which I’m really grateful for, and played me regularly. It just came to the point where Leicester made the decision to part company with him, but I’ve got nothing but respect. He was a nice man, a good coach, but it’s football – that’s the business we work in.
What was your reaction when you heard Brendan Rodgers was replacing him? Great CV, great name, great coach. He’s been a breath of fresh air, really – he backs all of it up on the training ground and there has been a big lift at the club since he took charge. He’s a pleasure to work with – the lads are buzzing, the intensity has gone up a notch in training, and I think that’s shown on the pitch.
What’s he changed about your game so far? He’s actually told me a lot in a short space of time. I’m playing as a No.8, which is a different role with different responsibilities. That’s good, though, because you don’t want to become a one-trick pony. Not every manager is going to play the same way and give you the same information. Playing a bit further back, there are things you need to know about defensive awareness. You drop a little deeper and you’re closer to your own goal, so there are different responsibilities: learning when to press, when to stay… things like that. How did you get so good at free-kicks? I used to watch David Beckham when I was younger, and we all know how good he was from dead-ball situations, so I’ve just always practiced. I’ve always loved taking free-kicks and put a lot of work into them.
You’ve already been called up for England, so where do you feel you’re at? It was an amazing experience and has always been a dream for me. For now, I can only keep concentrating on Leicester, keep my form high and let that take care of itself. I’ve got the U21 European Championship coming up, which I’ll probably be involved in. That will be brilliant, as I’ve never been involved in a tournament.
Were you surprised by Gareth Southgate’s comments about not wanting to use a No.10? I didn’t know he said that, as I don’t read the papers. But we had chats when I was with the senior squad – he’s a really nice guy and a very good coach, who I have so much respect for because he’s done a brilliant job. Obviously I’m a No.8 right now, so we’ll just see how it goes.
Where do you want to be this time next year? That’s way too far ahead for me to think! I just want to finish the season as strongly as I can and in good form. Leicester is a fantastic club, and I’m enjoying every moment under the new manager. We’ve kicked on, we’re in good form and long may that continue.