Maddison: Time in Scotland was so important
James Maddison entered his first senior England camp with a fearless attitude honed during a four-month loan spell in Scotland two years ago.
The 21-year-old was called up by Gareth Southgate for the Nations League double-header against Croatia and Spain after an impressive start to Premier League life at Leicester.
An attacking midfielder, Maddison earned his move to the King Power Stadium through some fine form in the second-tier at Norwich last year.
But it was a short stint with Aberdeen which the player credits with setting him up for life at the top of the game. A last-minute winner against Rangers and a Scottish League Cup final defeat to Celtic bookended his time at Pittodrie.
“I was an 18-year-old lad playing in a Scottish League Cup final at Hampden in front of 60,000 against Celtic and that’s an experience I will never forget,” he said.
“It did toughen me up because I took a lot of kicks, a lot of knocks, had a few little scraps with big Scottish guys on the pitch, I learnt a lot, toughened up, went back to Norwich and had a really good season.”
Maddison evolved into a key figure for the Canaries last season and that earned him a big-money move to Leicester and seven Premier League games ... and three goals later he is in the England squad for the first time.