Some voters might be tempted to dismiss James Maddison’s claim.
They’ll argue he’s only really turned it on since August and then simply because there was a chance that England boss Gareth Southgate, with three more squad picks than usual, might find space for him on the plane to Qatar.
But ask those who have watched him closely at Leicester, including those who have worked with him, about his form and they will tell you you’re barking up the wrong tree if you reckon he’s no more than a half-season wonder.
“We’re talking the last calendar year, maybe 18 months, after he’d had maybe a sticky period with confidence and people were on his back a little bit,” said Leicester keeper Danny Ward when asked about his club-mate’s form.
“He has really committed himself to working hard and you can see that in his game.
“We all see his goals, his flair, his link-up play and how he can change a game for us, but people don’t really take notice of the other side.
“He’s instrumental in the way we play, he’s closing off spaces, he has a real high energy where he will track back and help his full-back out when he is playing on the right-hand side.
“He has been massive for us.”
So massive that you have to wonder what kind of stats Maddison would have returned this season in a team which hadn’t struggled as badly as Leicester have.
If we accept that Kevin De Bruyne is the benchmark for midfielders — and surely we do — then Maddison’s stats compare favourably.
The Foxes star has scored seven goals and registered four assists to De Bruyne’s three goals and nine assists, and it’s not as if, like the Belgian, Maddison has Erling Haaland to finish off his good work.
Leicester were mauled at Arsenal and Tottenham this season but Maddison was still excellent, scoring well-crafted goals against both, and let’s not forget the delicious free-kick against Nottingham Forest, an another talent he has in his locker.
Between January and May, he scored 11 goals as well domestically and in Europe — finding the net in each of Leicester’s last four games of last season.
So don’t buy into the notion that Maddison has only produced the form he has because the carrot of a World Cup spot was dangled in front of him.
The lad can light up a fixture with a pass, cross, run, trick or goal and with the added confidence and maturity he will get from being part of the Three Lions squad, and at 26, he’s just coming into his prime.
Maddison is one of nine England-based players to be nominated for the national Fans' Footballer of the Year Award. You can vote in the form above or by clicking this link.
