James Maddison and his Leicester City side headed into Saturday's clash with Crystal Palace with a point to prove - none least to one intrigued observer.
The Foxes were bottom of the table ahead of kick-off at the King Power Stadium with their creator-in-chief out to impress under the watchful gaze of England boss Gareth Southgate. Maddison has been one of the standout performers for Brendan Rodgers ' side this term in what the former Norwich City star has labelled as an "embarrassing" start to the campaign.
Speaking ahead of the showdown with the Eagles, he said: “It's a big week for us because the reality is we're bottom of the league. And that's even painful to say out load and it's almost a little bit embarrassing that we're down there, so we need to do something about it.”
Whilst his hot form so far has led to loud calls for Maddison to be on the plane to Qatar, Saturday's clash wasn't a match that he will be able to look upon with any real fondness. On a couple of occasions, he was unable to pick out Patson Daka's runs in behind the Palace backline.
Indeed, Maddison’s compatriot Harvey Barnes looked to be the most-threatening for the hosts as he got on the end of a couple of clever one-twos - Palace stopper Vicente Guaita standing firm to deny him.
Another of the aspiring England inclusions, Marc Guehi, also went close to opening the scoring but his free header from a free-kick looped over the Leicester goal.
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Maddison almost opened the scoring after the break as he latched onto Barnes' centre only to fire wildly off target before dragging wide an excellent chance just before the hour-mark. Those spurned opportunities were certainly a huge departure from the exhilarating form that has seen the playmaker touted for a place in the England squad.
So often, Maddison has pointed to his ambitions of representing the Three Lions. The 25-year-old's only cap thus far came nearly three years ago in the form of a 34-minute cameo against Montenegro. Speaking of his England chances ahead of the Palace clash, he said: “England is a hard topic to talk about because I don't want to say the wrong thing.
“Of course you want to play for your country. I want that opportunity. I don't feel like I've had the opportunity to showcase my talent at that level and I think I could have an impact. The better I play for Leicester the more chance I've got.”
Whilst there of course remains concern of Maddison's place within the national team set-up, it appears that there is also worry over his long-term Leicester future. Rodgers has admitted that with just a year-and-a-half left on his contract at the King Power, interest from elsewhere is understandable - Arsenal, Tottenham and Newcastle have all been linked.
Following his under-par showing against Palace, Maddison's only route into the England squad beyond the World Cup might indeed be moving on from the East-Midlands.
“I would think [there would be interest]. My job is to coach him every day and make him the best he can be," the Leicester boss said. "It's only natural you want your absolute best players to be here, and we keep saying that, but we keep losing them. He's never a player you would want to lose."
Whether any of those clubs are tempted to make a move in the upcoming window based on Maddison's day against Palace remains to be seen - his afternoon rounded off with a booking for simulation with a suspension forthcoming. After wasting his chances to net, as well as being unable to really test Palace from a succession of set pieces, it leaves him in a very uncomfortable position.
Leicester of course remain rooted in the relegation zone, whilst Maddison has missed his opportunity to catch the eye of Southgate in what will likely be his final chance before next month's World Cup. It is fair to say that he failed to prove his point on another miserable day for his side.
