Maddison ready for ‘important’ first Tour with Spurs
Thu 13 July 2023, 16:30|
Tottenham Hotspur
James Maddison has underlined the importance of our Asia-Pacific Tour and that valuable ‘getting to know you’ time for the squad during a fortnight away together.
The midfielder arrived at Hotspur Way on Wednesday for his first pre-season sessions as a Spurs player – having been part of Gareth Southgate’s England squad for last month’s Euro 2024 qualifiers - after signing from Leicester City at the end of June.
He’ll soon be flying with his new team-mates to Perth and the first of our pre-season matches against West Ham at the Optus Stadium on Tuesday (18 July, 11am UK), followed by his former club Leicester City in Bangkok (23 July, 11am UK) and Lion City Sailors in Singapore (26 July, 12.30pm UK).
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“A pre-season tour is very important for a new player and the current players to almost integrate them and have that connection,” he said. “I don’t think that will be difficult. We’ve a great group here, I know a lot of the players anyway and, having played against them, you get a feel for the type of character they are.
“It’s an important time for bedding into the squad, for new signings, especially the foreign signings... that time away where you’re with each other constantly, so you get to know each other’s personal lives and stuff like that. That can all be important for team morale which normally leads to better success on the pitch. So, yes, it’s an important time.”
‘Madders’ told us on signing that he couldn’t wait to get started. “Spurs is going to go in a different direction with a new manager, a couple of signings already, I feel a hunger about the place and I’m ready to get going,” he said. “You come here and you get a feel for the club, everything about it, and it feels brilliant.”
