James Maddison has opened up on the mental and physical toll of his year-long injury nightmare, describing the “dark days” he faced while watching Tottenham’s season from the sidelines.
The England international finally made his competitive return during Monday night’s 1-1 draw with Leeds, ending a gruelling 375-day wait to get back onto the pitch.
The 29-year-old’s journey to recovery was far from straightforward, as he revealed that an initial assessment of his knee injury proved to be incorrect.
Maddison suffered the original blow during Tottenham’s Europa League semi-final against Bodo/Glimt in May 2025, but was initially told he did not require an operation.
Speaking after his comeback against Leeds, Maddison explained the situation in detail: “In my head, it goes back to the Europa League semi-final here when I got injured here because I did a partial ACL tear against Bodo/Glimt.
“I was told by the [external] specialist it wouldn’t need surgery and rehab.
“Then obviously it wasn’t strong, it didn’t recover properly, and I needed the full surgery, which is what happened in South Korea.”
Enduring dark days during recovery
The setback in South Korea during a pre-season friendly against Newcastle United extended his absence significantly, forcing him to undergo major surgery that sidelined him for over a year.
Maddison admitted that the mental challenge of such a long layoff was often harder to manage than the physical rehabilitation.
“There have been some dark days in the last year, especially since the surgery.
“It has been a really tough year for me mentally, but I’m at the end of the tunnel now, so I can kind of look back on that with fondness because I’m as mentally strong as I can after going through that.
“Physically, I feel really good, so the moment personally is something that will live with me forever, the reception Spurs fans gave me,” he added.
A reception to remember at Spurs
Despite the difficult circumstances surrounding Spurs’ current league position and their fight for safety, the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium rose to greet the playmaker when he finally entered the fray.
Maddison was clearly moved by the response from the stands, stating: “But that being said, that was still an amazing moment which will live with me forever, that reception I got today.
“Once I was out there and the first 30 seconds to a minute had gone by, it was like ‘now I’m on the pitch, we need to get a winner here’.
“The nice moment had gone. It was almost straight down to business.”
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Focusing on the survival fight
With Tottenham enduring a season to forget characterized by multiple managerial changes and inconsistent form, Maddison is now focused on helping Roberto De Zerbi’s side confirm their Premier League survival.
He admitted it has been painful to watch from the stands while the team struggled through a difficult run of results.
“It’s been a tough season for Tottenham. Really tough for the fans, really tough for the players. Lots of manager changes. It’s been a season to forget, really.” the midfielder concluded.
