James Maddison: Is midfielder ‘undroppable’ after impressive first England start?

It may have been a long time coming, but James Maddison’s full England debut was well worth the wait.

Three and a half years after his first cap as a substitute against Montenegro, Leicester midfielder Maddison started as the Three Lions easily defeated Ukraine to remain unbeaten in their Euro 2024 qualifying campaign.

Injuries and form had denied the 26-year-old a chance to make that full international debut earlier but he made up for lost time with a very promising performance at Wembley.

“It almost feels like a second debut, it’s been so long,” Maddison told BBC Radio 5 Live.

“I worked hard. I love football and just wanted to be back in the England squad. I always watch from my living room and I wanted to be a part of it.

“As a footballer and someone who strives for success, it’s hard to watch your friends play and not be involved.

“It was a good trip that I am proud of. I hope I gained the manager’s trust so he knows he can pick me.”

Maddison, playing on the left side of a back three, connected well on that cross with former Leicester colleague Ben Chilwell, who started at left-back.

Regularly cutting inward, his movement caused a lot of problems for the Ukrainian defense and he probably could have scored his full debut had he not finished poorly.

But everything else he did was good. He created five chances, the most by a player in his first England men’s start since Theo Walcott against Andorra in 2008.

His performance garnered praise from viewers, but Maddison was pragmatic in his assessment of his own performance.

“I did well,” he said.

“I’ll be critical when I look at it, I always am.”

Former Chelsea striker Chris Sutton believes Maddison should now be seen as an integral part of Southgate’s England squad.

“A lot of people have been calling for James Maddison to start for England for a long time,” he said on BBC Radio 5 Live.

“I think he deserved an earlier start and based on today’s performance he must be unavoidable.”

Ex-England, Chelsea and Liverpool striker Joe Cole said on Channel 4: “We can’t wait for another three years to see him in an England shirt.”

Former Manchester United and Leicester striker Dion Dublin said on BBC Radio 5 Live: “I’m happy for James Maddison.

“He deserves a start, he was brilliant at Leicester and it’s different for all of us to watch in an England shirt.”

Maddison’s early form of the season for Leicester – he scored six goals and provided four assists in his first 12 Premier League games – earned him a place in Southgate’s World Cup squad in Qatar.

However, a knee injury denied him the opportunity to participate in the tournament.

“I think the World Cup was important to me,” added Maddison.

“Although I didn’t play and struggled with injuries, I was able to be a good egg at camp.

For Southgate, it wasn’t just about Maddison’s personality in the squad, but also his performance on the pitch.

“We always wanted to start with James Maddison,” said the England manager.

“He played really well for his club so we had no doubts he would fit.

“His handling of the ball was excellent.”

England are now out of Euro 2024 qualifiers until they face Malta on June 16, so Maddison’s focus will now turn to helping Leicester – a point above the relegation zone – maintain their Premier League status .

“It was a brilliant start to qualifying and I will bring that form back to Leicester,” said Maddison.

Get the latest results and goal notifications for every team in the Fifa World Cup by downloading the BBC Sport app: Apple – Android – Amazon