Leicester City boss makes exciting James Maddison claim after key role in OH Leuven draw

Leicester City manager Brendan Rodgers has said James Maddison is looking better than he ever has done in his time at the club.

Last year’s player of the season started his first game of pre-season in the 3-3 draw with sister club OH Leuven on Saturday afternoon. The midfielder’s quick thinking from a free kick led to Patson Daka heading in to make it 2-2 just before both players were taken off as part of a full team change on 60 minutes.

Maddison ended the 2021/22 season with his best ever return for goals and assists, having netted 18 goals in all competitions, despite admitting he struggled for form and confidence at the start of the campaign. A chat with Rodgers after the 2-1 defeat against Brighton back in September helped to turn his season around.

The 25-year-old excelled in the second half of the campaign, scoring in each of his last four Premier League games before the summer break. He returned to pre-season with a point to prove after being left out of the England squad for the summer’s Nation’s League games, appearing to excel in videos of pre-season testing released by the club.

Following the draw vs Leuven, Rodgers seemed to back up what fans had noticed about the midfielder in the early days of pre-season, making a claim that can only be good news for the upcoming season.

“James Maddison, it’s the best I’ve seen him, in the three-and-a-half years I’ve been at Leicester,” he told LCFCTV. “He looks now really physically strong, technically confident and tactically, his view of the game is outstanding. His quick thinking, free kick, and of course, a really good finish by Patson.”

After a week long training camp in Evian, followed by the game in Belgium, Maddison and the rest of the City squad will now