Newcastle v Tottenham: Maddison's swagger has returned so back him via a 5/1 Bet Builder

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Newcastle v Tottenham
Sunday September 1, 13:30
Live on Sky Sports

Have a Mad one: back Spurs playmaker to flourish

James Maddison has his swagger back - and that means I want to invest in him making a difference in football matches.

After a summer of rest, recouperation and perhaps a bit of soul searching to why his form dipped so suddenly towards the end of last season, Maddison looks raring to go and has already made a big difference to Tottenham's attacking output. He's already got two assists to his name and leads the way for chances created (5) for Ange Postecoglou's dangerous and exciting side.

When Spurs were purring at the start of last season, Maddison was arguably the best player in the Premier League.

Until the ankle injury that saw him limp off and miss three months of action between November and January, Maddison was working at a goal involvement rate of every 111 minutes of action. After those two assists already against Leicester and Everton, he's got that ratio back to those levels and I'm keen on backing him to sustain that whilst in such fresh and firing form.

Therefore, for a game where Tottenham are expected to find the net at least twice according to the market, there are many betting options to consider.

The simplest one looks to be the 7/52.40 on offer from the Betfair Sportsbook on him grabbing another goal involvement so to score or assist - something he managed in seven of his first nine Premier League games for Tottenham last season. And of course, that bet would have landed in both his appearances this season, too.

5/1 Maddison Bet Builder has serious potential

Along with him to score or assist, I'm liking the look of the odds surrounding his shots on target prices and to commit a foul.

Maddison is a real greedy guts when it comes to shots - and that's exactly the type of player I love backing in these markets where he is 10/111.91 to have at least one shot on target. Over the past three seasons, he is averaging 1.08 shots on target per 90 minutes and during his red-hot period of form before that injury last season, he hit 14 shots on target in nine games.

You have to factor in the opposition too when it comes to making a shots-based betting decision. Newcastle have conceded at least 10 shots in their last 23 Premier League games with the backdrop of a 5.8 per game shots on target conceded average.

This isn't a secure team defensively.

Fouls should be to the fore in this one too considering both teams averaged in the top three last season for fouls won. Maddison could be employed in a deeper role like he was in the win over Everton last weekend where he made two fouls.

English Premier League - Top 5 Fouls Won

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He's going to be in constant contact with Bruno Guimaraes, who has drawn the most fouls of any Premier League player (203) since the start of the 22/23 season. The 4/91.44 on Maddison making at least one foul looks generous.

Now read our Opta-based stats bets for this weekend's Premier League action

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