James Maddison: Tottenham Midfielder Shares How Having Five Young Children Helped Distract from Injury
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"Second set of twins a good distraction from injury - Maddison"
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Figure caption: My family got me through injury - Maddison
Published 11 minutes ago
The Football Interview will be available on BBC One at 12:45 every Saturday during the Premier League season, as well as on BBC iPlayer, BBC Football YouTube, and the BBC Sport website and app.
The inaugural episode of the new season, airing August 22nd, features an interview with Tottenham Hotspur's James Maddison conducted by Kelly Somers.
Tottenham midfielder James Maddison opened up about his recovery from a serious knee injury (ruptured anterior cruciate ligament (ACL)), which kept him out of football for most of the 2025-26 season:
"I needed that positive distraction of my partner being pregnant and having to be there for her and forget about myself, even though I was going through a traumatic experience through my knee."
Despite welcoming their second set of twins during his recovery, Maddison expressed gratitude for the support from his family.
"A lot of nappies flying about, a lot of accidents at home, but it'll all be worth it."
Maddison also shared how his absence from football affected his eldest son, Leo:
"He couldn't even remember over a year ago when he was at all the games. It would be nice for him to come to the games again and actually remember Dad playing instead of just Dad sat at home watching him with a machine on his knee."
Maddison praised Roberto de Zerbi, Tottenham's Italian head coach, for his innovative approach:
"He's very clever. He's very tactical. He's obsessed with football... But to be honest, when he first came in – in comparison to pre-season and what we're training now – he didn't want to make it too complicated. He just wanted us to get the love back for playing football."