Good evening, Mr Southgate!
The England boss had another World Cup selection headache thanks to James Maddison’s virtuoso display in Leicester’s Premier League clash with Nottingham Forest.
Forest were unable to contain the masterful Maddison, who scored twice in Leicester’s frantic display at the King Power Stadium.
The former had a touch of luck as Maddison’s strike deflected past Forest defender Scott McKenna to break the deadlock.
After Harvey Barnes wrapped Leicester 2-0 up beautifully, Maddison then secured his second and Leicester’s third with a fine free-kick from 25 yards, which went into the post.
Many believe the 25-year-old midfielder was unlucky not to make the England squad in their recent Nations League clashes and these demands for him to be called up don’t go away. not disappear.
Former England and Leicester striker Gary Lineker tweeted: “Just breaking the temporary silence to emphasize once again that @Madders10 is @England’s most creative midfielder. , and that he must surely be part of the Qatar team.”
talkSPORT’s Darren Bent tweeted: “If he’s not on the plane it’s embarrassing.”
Meanwhile, Danny Murphy said in a commentary for talkSPORT: “I wonder if Gareth Southgate is here or watching at home. I hope he watches because Maddison is terrific.
“He showed that he can play an important role tonight and come and cause problems.
“I know he plays against Forest and not against Brazil or Argentina, but you know what I mean.
“He constantly causes problems for teams, he makes things happen and his numbers are better than almost any other player in his position.”
Speaking of numbers, a lot of very impressive Maddison stats came up during the game.
He now has nine goals in his last 11 Premier League appearances for Leicester and this season he has five goals and one assist.
Since the start of the 2017/18 season, Maddison has scored seven direct free-kicks – a tally only bettered by James Ward-Prowse (13) and Lionel Messi (21).
But interestingly, since his Premier League debut in August 2018, Leicester’s James Maddison has scored 17 goals from outside the box, more than any other player, while only Ward-Prowse (12) has scored more direct free-kicks in competition during that time than Maddison (8).
Listen to the full Leicester v Southampton commentary live on talkSPORT and catch all the latest updates on our dedicated live blog.
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