Joe Cole urges England not to misuse their very own Cesc Fabregas

Joe Cole has likened Leicester City midfielder James Maddison to Cesc Fabregas following his match-winning performance against Tottenham Hotspur whilst urging England boss Gareth Southgate to not misuse him.

The Foxes came from a goal down against Spurs at the King Power Stadium to register a 2-1 victory with Maddison’s winner coming after Ricardo Pereira had equalised Harry Kane’s opener.

Maddison v Spurs: Five key things to know…

• Scored the Foxes winner from his fourth shot on goal.
• It ended a run of 10 consecutive Premier League matches without scoring.
• He created two goalscoring opportunities.
• Maddison completed four take-ons, more than anyone on the pitch.
• England boss Gareth Southgate was in attendance, Maddison is yet to be capped at senior level.

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His effort was a longtime coming, with Maddison having produced no fewer than 31 shots since his last Premier League goal which came against Huddersfield in April. But it was his overall performance on Saturday, and since joining Leicester, that has caught the eye.

Across last season, his first campaign in England’s top division, Maddison was the only player to create 100 goalscoring chances in England’s top division, and the first English player to do so since Leighton Baines in 2012/13.

Despite all of this, he’s yet to earn a senior international cap having been an unused substitute in four previous England outings, but as far as Cole is concerned that needs to soon change.

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“James Maddison might join a long list of players we might not have got the best of… like Glen [Hoddle], like Scholesy. It would be a travesty if he doesn’t have an English shirt on the next game,” he told BT Sport.

“I’m likening him to Cesc Fabregas type. He’s that good. We need to start trusting these players. We need to put the talented players centrally. He’s definitely good enough to play for England.

“We’ll be kicking ourselves if players like him, Mount, Foden, Grealish aren’t playing in the next tournament.”

Former England striker Peter Crouch also talked up Maddison’s ability, insisting the Three Lions must find a way to get him into the team.

He added: “He was the best player on the pitch today. We haven’t been able to handle these talented players, you can go back to Le Tissier.

“We have to find a way to get him into the England side.

“We need to start trusting these players. We need to put the talented players centrally. He’s definitely good enough to play for England.”