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| James Maddison celebrates his winner (Image: Marc Atkins/Getty Images) |
James Maddison scored the winning goal as Tottenham beat Manchester United 1-0 and the Spurs star sent a message to Red Devils legend Roy Keane with his celebration
James Maddison has suggested his celebration was a response to Roy Keane after he scored the winning goal in Tottenham's 1-0 victory over Manchester United.
The win was Tottenham's first Premier League victory at home since November, while it is only the second time they have won back-to-back games so far this season. And it was Maddison's first-half strike which earned Spurs the win, with the 28-year-old firing home a rebound on his first start since recovering from a calf injury.
However, United legend Keane was not expecting Maddison to make much of an impact on his return. "We saw James Maddison at Tamworth, he was taken off! Tamworth are non-league," on the Stick to Football podcast, brought to you by Sky Bet.
"People say, 'Maddison's the man', but when is he going to step up to the plate? He got relegated with Leicester and [looks like] with Spurs. Maddison isn't bad but if you think he's going to come back and get Spurs top six, you're in cuckoo land.
"He's a talented player, but if you're a player in the Spurs dressing room and he's back in the squad, you wouldn't be looking and going, 'James is back today – we're going to be fine!'."
Maddison celebrated his goal with his trademark dart-throwing motion, before putting his finger to his lips in a shushing gesture. Although Maddison did not specifically say the celebration was aimed at Keane, he did admit it was a response to "outside noise
He told Sky Sports: "It's always difficult being out injured. You miss one game or 10, you are always champing at the bit to get back. I went into the game today knowing I can be the difference.
"I'm really proud of the boys, obviously it has been an up and down season, we are not where we want to be in the league table. I'm really happy for the lads and for the fans, we're sending them home happy. I've always been a goalscoring midfielder.
"That's why Spurs brought me to the club. I'm there to be that creative outlet and score goals. There was a little bit of outside noise this week. People will have their opinions. Nobody is more critical of me than myself.
"The gaffer prefers when we are in our own bubble but it's difficult with social media, you see this stuff. To be fair to the boys who have been fit all season, we don't want to make excuses, but the last few months have been really difficult.
"The lads who have relentlessly been going every three days, it's nice to be an injured player coming back to take the pressure off them. It's about us being present now and leading like they did during the bad run."
- Matthew Cooper
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