Jamie Carragher believes that James Maddison may become a crucial figure if Tottenham Hotspur hopes to avoid the drop and remain in the Premier League. The north London side have been plagued by a cascade of injuries, and their recent 1-0 victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers – their first win of the 2026 calendar year – was achieved despite the loss of several key attacking players. Xavi Simons, who has been a £52 million signing, was forced to miss the remainder of the season after sustaining a serious injury, a setback that Carragher described as a major blow to the club's survival hopes.
The injury list for Spurs continues to grow. They sit two points adrift of safety with four matches left, after summer recruit Mohammed Kudus and captain Cristian Romero were ruled out for the rest of the campaign early in Ange Postecoglou’s tenure. Dejan Kulusevski has also been sidelined, and James Maddison has not featured since August last year when he tore his anterior cruciate ligament.
Although Maddison has been named in the squad for the last two match‑days, the medical staff have deemed him not yet fit for a full‑time return. During Monday Night Football, Carragher argued that Maddison possesses the "magic" Tottenham need to stave off relegation.
"Spurs have been incredibly unlucky with injuries," he told Sky Sports. "If they hadn't suffered such a catastrophic injury record, they wouldn't be in this precarious position." He highlighted the unusual concentration of ACL injuries among players who occupy similar attacking roles: Kulusevski, Maddison and now Simons.
"Now I feel Maddison, who is finally coming back from a long lay‑off, may have to play a pivotal role in keeping Tottenham up," Carragher added. The former Liverpool and England defender went on to name Maddison as the only player he could envision delivering a moment of brilliance. "He has the same quality you see in Jarrod Bowen or Morgan Gibbs‑White," Carragher said. "Even if he only gets 15 to 20 minutes off the bench, he could provide the spark Spurs desperately need, especially in the upcoming away fixtures at Aston Villa and Chelsea." Carragher also noted Maddison's mentality: "When I think of the Spurs squad and the looming fear of relegation, even after the win at Wolves, Maddison would still want the ball, would still look to create chances no matter the circumstances.
For Tottenham to survive, I believe he has a role to play." Everton midfielder Kiernan Dewsbury‑Hall echoed this sentiment on the same programme, calling Maddison "probably the most creative player in the Spurs lineup". He added, "He wouldn't have wanted to be in a situation where the team relies on him, but he is the type of player who could come on in the final 15‑20 minutes and either set up a goal or score one himself.
Tottenham currently lack a reliable goal‑scoring outlet." The relegation battle remains tight. After the weekend, Tottenham, West Ham and Nottingham Forest all matched Forest's victory, leaving three clubs scrambling to avoid joining Burnley and Wolves in the Championship next season.
Spurs have four games remaining: home fixtures against Leeds United and Everton, and away trips to Aston Villa and Chelsea. Carragher warned that despite the win at Wolves, Tottenham could still struggle due to a paucity of goals compared with Forest and West Ham, who benefit from the attacking firepower of players like Gibbs‑White and Bowen.
"It's going to be really tough for Spurs," Carragher said. "The fans might think a single win has solved everything, but they haven't won a league game all season. Meanwhile, West Ham and Forest also secured victories, so the gap hasn't closed.
Adding the recent injury list to the equation, Tottenham are actually in a worse position than last week, even though they have cleared the supposedly easiest match on paper." Former Spurs manager Tim Sherwood also weighed in on Sky Sports FC, stressing that injuries have derailed Tottenham's campaign and are not merely a matter of bad luck. "They need to examine why so many of their players are picking up soft‑tissue and non‑contact injuries," Sherwood argued. "If you keep losing top talent like Kulusevski and Maddison to long‑term knocks, the ultimate price could be relegation." Sherwood compared Spurs' attacking options with those of their rivals, noting that West Ham and Nottingham Forest both field front‑four systems featuring dynamic forwards such as Morgan Gibbs‑White and Jarrod Bowen. "Spurs don't have an attacker who can even come close to the quality of those players," he said.
"That worries me. After watching the Wolves game and seeing the injury list, I wonder who will actually find the net for Tottenham." Looking ahead to the decisive fixtures at Villa Park and Stamford Bridge, Sherwood expressed doubt that Spurs will be able to score more than a solitary goal in each match. "If they do score, it will likely be just one, meaning they must keep a clean sheet to win. That's a very fragile formula," he warned.
"The pressure will then shift to the home games against Leeds and Everton, where they must deliver points to survive." In summary, both Carragher and Sherwood agree that Tottenham's survival hinges on two factors: the return of James Maddison to full fitness and a sudden surge in attacking efficiency. Maddison's creativity, vision and experience could provide the much‑needed spark in the final weeks, while the club must also address the underlying injury crisis that has left the squad depleted. With only four matches left, every minute on the pitch becomes critical, and the former defender believes that even a short cameo from Maddison could be the difference between staying in the Premier League and dropping into the Championship.