MADDISON’S BEEN COASTING SO FAR
Puel wants more after wonder goal
JAMES MADDISON has never experienced the cushioned life of academy football. League One with Coventry, Championship at Norwich, a loan to Aberdeen — not always easy.
But manager Claude Puel fears he has been coasting a little at Leicester.
It is unusual criticism to aim at a player who has starred in his first four months in the Premier League and earned an England call-up, but Puel clearly sees more to come from Maddison.
He scored a fantastic goal on Saturday, juggling the ball between two Watford defenders with three mid-air touches before powering a volley past goalkeeper Ben Foster.
Puel credited some of Maddison’s step-up in performance to a reaction to a sending-off for diving at Brighton last week. Maddison apologised to supporters, saying there was ‘no excuse’. From there, he picked himself up, starred in training in the week and sent the King Power Stadium into raptures seven days later.
‘I think his sending- off was a good thing for him, to take the right decision,’ Puel said. ‘He was upset with himself.
‘He wanted to perform and he’s an intelligent player, a talented player, and when he plays with this mentality, this positivity, it’s fantastic.
‘After his sending- off he wanted to give his best but now I want him to maintain his performance and stay clever.
‘ He needs to manage what happens around him with his ability and good work. He started very well at the beginning of the season but it was not top performances all the time. I want him to always keep the same desire.’ England discovered who their Euro 2020 qualifying opponents will be yesterday but Puel would prefer the 22-year- old Maddison (below) to forget about national duty for now. ‘I think it’s not important for the moment,’ he said. ‘Selection or no selection would not change anything about his improvement, about what he needs to continue to perform, to provide this good consistency game after game and to maintain his mentality and desire with the team.’ Watford must wish they had someone with the clinical class that an in-the-mood Maddison showed at the King Power. Javi Gracia’s team have scored only once in their last four matches, missed a hatful of chances here and Manchester City are up next, when they will be without midfielder Etienne Capoue after his late red card for a studs-up challenge on Kelechi Iheanacho. LEICESTER CITY (4-3-3): Schmeichel 6.5; Pereira 7, Morgan 6, Evans 6.5 (Iborra 85min), Chilwell 7.5; Albrighton 7.5, Mendy 7, Ndidi 7; MADDISON 8, Vardy 7.5 (Iheanacho 6, 72), D Gray 7.5 (Soyuncu 6, 69). Subs not used: Ward, Okazaki, Diabate, Fuchs. Scorers: Vardy 12, Maddison 23. Booked: Albrighton, Maddison. Manager: Claude Puel 7.5. WATFORD (4-4-2): Foster 5.5; Femenia 6, Mariappa 6, Cathcart 6, Holebas 6.5; Hughes 5.5 (Chalobah 76), Doucoure 5.5, Capoue 4.5, Pereyra 6.5 (Deeney 6, 55); Deulofeu 7 (A Gray 6, 55), Success 6. Subs not used: Gomes, Masina, Sema, Kabasele. Booked: Success. Sent off: Capoue. Manager: Javi Gracia 6. Referee: Graham Scott 6.5. Attendance: 31,553.