James Maddison's Tough Year: From Injury to Family Chaos

James Maddison has spent the past year in two very different kinds of battle.

On one side, a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament that ripped him out of Tottenham Hotspur’s season last August and kept him out for almost the entire 2025-26 campaign. On the other, a chaotic, love-filled home with five children aged four and under – including two sets of twins.

As he tells Kelly Somers in the first episode of the new series of The Football Interview, it has been, in his own words, “the toughest year of his life”.

The programme airs on BBC One at 12:45 every Saturday during the Premier League season, and is also available on BBC iPlayer, BBC Football’s YouTube channel and the BBC Sport website and app. Maddison opens the new run on Saturday, 22 August, with a conversation that veers from nappies to knee braces, from relegation fear to renewed belief.

‘In the trenches’ at home

While Spurs toiled on the pitch, Maddison was locked in rehab and family life. His partner gave birth to their second set of twins during his recovery, turning their house into what he jokingly paints as a war zone of wipes and night feeds.

He says the pair have been “in the trenches” together. The chaos, though, became a lifeline.

“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,” he tells Somers.

There was nothing glamorous about it.

“A lot of nappies flying about, a lot of accidents at home, but it’ll all be worth it,” he says. “We still love it. I wouldn’t change it for the world.”

The long lay-off brought a more painful twist. His eldest son, Leo, started to believe Dad no longer played for Spurs.

“I missed a year of football, and a year in a child’s life – from three and a half to four and a half – it’s obviously massive,” Maddison says. “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.”

Watching Spurs suffer from the sofa

While Maddison fought to bend and twist his damaged knee again, Tottenham unravelled. Spurs survived only on the final day, finishing two points above the relegation zone after a season stripped of rhythm and confidence.

For a player who thrives on dictating games, watching from home cut deep.

“We probably struggled a little bit for creativity and I’m watching the games thinking, ‘what would I be doing there?’” he admits.

He could not change a thing. Not the line-up, not the tempo, not the table. Just the channel.

De Zerbi’s reset: beer, bonding and a spot on the bench

The mood began to shift in March with the arrival of Roberto de Zerbi. The Italian, known for his intense, detailed approach, chose a softer entry point for a fragile dressing room.

“He’s very clever. He’s very tactical. He’s obsessed with football, you can see that,” Maddison says.

But De Zerbi’s first priority was not patterns of play. It was joy.

“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.”

So his opening move was not a double session. It was a team meal – with the drinks flowing.

The 29-year-old recalls De Zerbi telling the squad: “We’re all going to be drinking alcohol, we’re all going to be having a good night.”

Maddison loved the message.

“He wanted us to have a night where we all just relax,” he explains. “That feeling that we got made everyone feel more knitted together, straight away.”

De Zerbi’s next decision was more surprising. He put Maddison on the bench before the midfielder felt ready.

“I was almost like, ‘I’m not ready to play yet, boss’,” Maddison says.

The answer came back blunt and warm.

De Zerbi told him he could come “on the bench in my slippers” if he wanted. What mattered was his presence, his influence, his voice around the group. Maddison took it as “a massive compliment” and threw himself into the role, “as if I was part of the bench, part of the team”.

He will not claim it as the turning point, but Spurs did “manage to steer clear of the danger”, and the relief around the club was obvious.

Eyes on a clean, healthy season

Maddison finally made his competitive return against Leeds on 11 May. Spurs have not risked him in pre-season so far, but his confidence has not dimmed.

“I’m working so hard to try and be fully fit and available for the majority of the season,” he says. “I want just a fully fit, healthy season where I can just enjoy football.”

There is no modesty about what that version of Maddison can do.

“Because if I’m fully fit and I’m healthy, then I know what I’m capable of. And I know that I can affect games more than a lot of players in this league. So, let’s just hope for that.”

From nappies to night games, from a machine on his knee to De Zerbi’s reset, the last year has stripped Maddison back. Now comes the real question: after surviving a season without him, what can Spurs become with their creator finally back on the pitch?