Maddison: A Fantastic Feeling In The Dressing Room

- James Maddison reflects on Leicester City’s 2-1 Premier League win over Sheffield United at Bramall Lane
- The England international assisted Jamie Vardy for the winning goal on 90 minutes
- Maddison felt City deserved to claim all three points following a dominant performance in South Yorkshire

The Foxes No.10 set up Jamie Vardy’s 90th-minute winner as Brendan Rodgers’ men ended a four-game winless run with a hard-earned triumph in South Yorkshire.

Striker Ayoze Pérez had initially given City the lead with a close-range finish before Oli McBurnie’s header restored parity, but after a dominant display, Vardy struck with only injury time remaining.

“There's a fantastic feeling inside the dressing room,” Maddison told LCFC TV. “Wins are just not easy to come by in the Premier League, especially away from home against a team who are really fighting for their lives at the bottom - every point matters because safety is such a big incentive in the Premier League.

“So, the feeling in the dressing room, I don't know if you just saw the lads then, they're the moments that we do this for. It gives me goosebumps in there seeing the lads, how happy we are, how much we put into the game, and to win it late it's just a great feeling.

“It's just a shame that the fans weren't here. I know the away fans actually sit that end and I remember Barnesy (Harvey Barnes) whacked one in on the volley last year, and they're the sort of winners that you remember, so it's bittersweet.”

Maddison revealed there was no doubt in his mind to play the ball forward to Vardy after recovering possession in midfield, and his pass proved to be a perfect one as the No.9 latched onto it before beating Aaron Ramsdale in a one-on-one situation.

“When you play teams like, a player like myself, I'm going to give the ball away, I'm going to try things that won't always come off and it might come across frustrating at times,” Maddison said.

“That's the type of player I am, I've got to create goals and score goals for the team, and to do that, you have to take risks. If I'm a player who's just going to keep the ball and have 97 per cent pass completion every game, I'm not going to get an assist and I'm not going to create chances like I want to be doing.

“So, when I picked the ball up in that area, it wasn't a case of maybe being safe and keeping the ball. I tried it a couple times earlier on and it didn't necessarily work, but I know the quality I have and the quality of movement of Jamie Vardy, that if the situation does arise, I'll try and try again.

“And thankfully, the weight of pass was perfect, and listen, I'll put my house on that Jamie Vardy's going to score them.”

While it was an encounter that was settled by only one goal, City had over 70 per cent ball possession, and hit the post on two occasions in the first period.

Maddison added: “I thought it was a brilliant performance. I thought it was one of our best performances because it is a different type of performance. We didn't score five goals like we did it at Man City or we didn't blow someone away, because it's a tough game away from home, but we ground it [out].

“We went ahead, got set back and we dealt with the adversity, we dealt with the pressure that they threw at us. They came out better in the second half, I'm not sure they created that many chances. They had a couple of set pieces which we need to do better on.

“A quick point on that, we gave away too many goals from set pieces, and another one today, which is disappointing. I know the manager won't be happy with that. But listen, we ground it out. We've got that chance and it fell to our talisman, and he put it away, and I had no doubt that was going to be the case.”