England ace James Maddison had the perfect reply when a teacher told him his football dream was an unrealistic goal.
The midfield wizard – tipped to be one of Gareth Southgate ’s stars in Qatar – was warned: “Only one in a million make it as a footballer.” But the skinny, footie-obsessed 16-year-old responded: “I’m that one”.
He proved the point he made in the 2013 exchange – which he revealed in a tweet – months later by joining his home town side, Coventry City.
Now 25, The Leicester City star celebrated his World Cup call-up last week by sharing a childhood snap wearing an England shirt with his face painted with the St George’s Cross.
His caption read: “It hasn’t sunk in… I’m going to the World Cup. Dreams really do come true.”
Maddison started at Coventry’s academy at seven and dad Gary has posted videos of him showing off his talent on YouTube. Ex-skipper Carl Baker, 39, now assistant manager at AFC Telford United, said: “Madders must only have been 16 and he joined in a few first-team sessions.
“He hadn’t fully developed but even being a bit lightweight, he was as good as anyonel. He was always staying after training and practising his free-kicks.”
Maddison, who joined Leicester in 2018 for a fee of reportedly around £20million, still keeps in touch with ex-Coventry mates.
Devon Kelly-Evans, 26, who now plays for Leamington FC, said: “When he got the call-up I sent him a message to say congratulations.
“ He got back straight away, which speaks volumes. There are a lot of footballers who aren’t like that.”
Meanwhile, Maddison had an injury scare today.
He was substituted after 25 minutes with an apparent knee issue as Leicester beat West Ham 2-0. Boss Brendan Rodgers said he was “OK” and was taken off as a precaution.
