Leicester's Maddison rues missed opportunity at Stamford Bridge

James Maddison turned in a man-of-the-match performance in Leicester City's 1-1 draw at Chelsea but felt he should have snatched the win.

Published : Aug 19, 2019 09:21 IST

Leicester midfielder James Maddison
Leicester midfielder James Maddison
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Leicester midfielder James Maddison

Leicester City playmaker James Maddison acknowledged he must add goals to take his game to the next level.

Maddison was named man of the match in Sunday's 1-1 Premier League draw against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, leading Leicester's recovery from Mason Mount's early opener.

The 22-year-old's inviting corner was headed home by Wilfred Ndidi but he crashed over when presented with a glorious chance to steal three points.

"You see the lads on their knees. We've come away disappointed. We had chances, myself included," Maddison told Sky Sports.

"If you come to Stamford Bridge and play like that you have to take the chances you create.

"On reflection, last season I scored seven goals and it’s something I want to improve if I'm going to go to that next level.

"I'm still learning, I'm practicing and I'm sure I’ll improve that part of my game."

Chelsea youth product Mount enjoyed a moment to savour when he picked Ndidi's pocket to delight a buoyant crowd, enjoying Frank Lampard's first home game at the helm, in the seventh minute.

"Coming through the academy and being at the club since I was six, it’s what you dream of," he told Sky Sports.

"We look at the result and we're disappointed.

"This is the way the manager wants us to press, maybe [Ndidi] couldn't see me coming and I got the ball.

"The first 20 minutes were good but the next 70 we weren't up to speed.

"I want to score goals, get assists and have an affect on the game. As a team we look at our performance overall and there are things we need to work on."

Maddison conducted his television interview alongside a still-crestfallen Ndidi and sought to lift his team-mate with fulsome praise.

"The reaction from this man was brilliant," he said. "To show the character he did, to come back, control the game and score with a bullet header.

"He's probably still thinking about that mistake but forget about it. He was excellent. He deserves all the credit."

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