James Maddison discusses how Neal Maupay imitated his celebratory gesture resembling throwing darts.

James Maddison had a witty response to Neal Maupay’s attempt to imitate his darts celebration after the Brentford forward scored the opening goal against Tottenham Hotspur. The goal came in the 13th minute, capitalizing on some sloppy play from Spurs in midfield. Maupay seized the opportunity, stealing the ball and bundling it home on the rebound from Ivan Toney’s powerful shot.

Maddison was not impressed with Maupay’s celebration, but he had the last laugh as Tottenham came back in the second half to secure a 3-2 victory. When asked about his altercation with Maupay, Maddison told TNT Sports, “I just said to him he probably hasn’t scored enough goals of his own over the last few years to have his own celebration so you probably have to copy mine. A short story – it ended well for us.”

In the first half, a lackluster Spurs side found themselves trailing to Maupay’s strike. However, they quickly turned the game around with goals from Destiny Udogie, Brennan Johnson, and Richarlison in a seven-minute flurry. Toney’s goal in the 67th minute set up an exciting finish, but Tottenham held on for a crucial three points.

For Maddison, it was a special moment as it marked his first league appearance since November due to an ankle injury. He expressed his joy at being back on the pitch, saying, “When you’re injured and starved of doing what you love, that just reminded me why I love football so much just being out there tonight.”

Reflecting on the match, Maddison acknowledged that the first half was challenging, with Brentford disrupting the flow of the game. However, he believed Tottenham had the upper hand in the second half, stating, “We were cleaner with the ball, created a lot of chances, scored some goals, and it’s never simple and plain sailing here. There’s a lot of goals at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, but luckily three points, so I’m happy.”

The victory propelled Tottenham up to fourth place in the table, just three points behind Manchester City and Arsenal in second and third respectively. Maddison remained optimistic about the team’s prospects for the season, urging his teammates not to set limits. He said, “Let’s not put a ceiling on it, let’s just keep going game by game. We can go on a big run. You can’t put limits on it because then nothing special can ever happen.”

Maddison concluded by emphasizing the importance of giving their all in every game and assessing their performance at the end of the season. He said, “As long as you can look at yourself as a team after 38 games and say you gave everything, then we’ll see where we are at the end of it.”