James Maddison and captain Son Heung-min are expected to be healthy for Saturday’s “great test” against Liverpool, according to Tottenham head coach Ange Postecoglou. Son and Maddison were substituted late in last weekend’s 2-2 draw against Arsenal because, in the manager’s words, they weren’t “100 percent” ready for the local derby. Brennan Johnson will be absent, but the important duo both worked out on Friday, and Postecoglou is still hopeful they will play against Jurgen Klopp’s squad. “From last week, Brennan will miss out,” he stated. Although it’s not too serious, he won’t be able to work this week. “Madders and Sonny worked out today; they just ended the workout and appeared to handle it reasonably well. We’ll just have to watch how they pull up because it’s fair to say that they were a little sore from last week and had a little bit of training interruption. Tottenham maintained their unblemished start in the Premier League under Postecoglou with a 2-2 tie at the Emirates thanks to two Maddison and Son combinations. After the game last Sunday, summer signing Maddison said the team was starting to shake off the label of “Spursy” since they had the tenacity to hold Arsenal off twice. Postecoglou observed, “I don’t know exactly what Madders said, but he is obviously new to the club and is going on what he is feeling at the moment. The guys have demonstrated a good deal of resiliency this season, and we’ve had to adapt to the circumstances of how the games have gone. In the context of a football game, there have been many instances where things didn’t go our way. “These things can occasionally become a little bit exaggerated because opposing fans are certainly searching for any kind of grievance that a football club may have. This team has been at the top of the standings for some time, and it came very close to winning the Champions League, so it is not a team that has been struggling for a very long time. Every group of participants, including myself, has the chance to fix the obvious vital piece that is lacking. During his press conference earlier on Friday, Liverpool manager Klopp was all praise for Postecoglou, and the Australian returned the favor. In terms of how they play and approach things, they probably contribute something unique to the league that no other team does, according to Postecoglou. “Jurgen is an excellent manager. I believe it’s fair to say that he’s one of the managers who has had an impact on the competition, not just his club. “Because when he arrived, with the way Liverpool handled things, he questioned a number of Premier League norms and established a novel style of play that others have since imitated. It’s an excellent test of where we are right now in terms of growth.
