Spurs star with 'enormous self-belief' is an example to others - Ange Postecoglou

Ange Postecoglou has praised the confidence and the self-belief that one Tottenham star possesses, naming him as an example for his teammates to learn from.

Tottenham star no longer a guaranteed starter

James Maddison would have come into this season with hopes of being the man who takes Tottenham to the next level and forces his way back into the England squad.

Instead, the 28-year-old now finds himself in and out of the Spurs side, with Dejan Kulusevski taking over the role of the club’s creator in chef in midfield.

Maddison has responded in the manner that Postecoglou would want, delivering when opportunities have come his way, and the Tottenham head coach is not surprised by that.

Ange Postecoglou praises James Maddison

Maddison can certainly not be accused of being short of confidence, with the attacking midfielder exuding an air of arrogance with the way he plays and the way he conducts himself.

Postecoglou insisted that the sort of belief and leadership that the former Leicester man shows is something he wants others in his squad to imbibe.

When asked about Maddison’s belief, the Tottenham head coach told Football.London: “I don’t think he puts that on. He is genuine in that. He does have enormous self-belief which is a great thing to have in life. We all want to have that self-confidence in whatever area we are involved in. That comes through with the way he talks, the way he trains and the way he plays.

“He wants to be the catalyst for things and it’s good because it’s a good mix in terms of leadership but again the challenge for Madders and all these guys is to turn that into a positive force where the team benefits as much as he does individually.

“I’m trying to give room for this team to grow and the individuals within it to grow and make more of an impact on each other as much as themselves, because there are probably guys in the team who would love to have Madders’ self-belief in their own game and he can help in that area.”

James Maddison needs to fight for Ange Postecoglou

While Maddison has started Tottenham’s last two Premier League matches against Manchester City and Fulham, he has had an elongated spell out of the team before that.

Postecoglou made it clear that the 28-year-old, like every other player in the squad, will have to prove that he deserves to be in the team.

When asked if being left out of the side has affected Maddison’s mood, the 59-year-old responded: “I’m not in the happiness business but they are all here to help us be successful whether you’re playing or not because sometimes when you come on for 10 minutes you can help us change a course of our season so for me you’re a member of this squad, no-one is guaranteed anything.

“I don’t say to players you are going to play 55 games, it’s unlikely anyone will do that. In fact, no one will. So if [Maddison] misses a couple of games, he’s disappointed, that’s fine. What I am looking at is when you do play, make your biggest possible impact and that’s what he did.”

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