It’s time for the old North vs South debate again as Danny Murphy has suggested that James Maddison may prefer a move to Tottenham over Newcastle United based on geography.
Danny Murphy was talking to Andy Goldstein on TalkSPORT about whether Tottenham are an attractive club for players and if things like training facilities, stadium and location are things that come into play when a player is considering a move.
To be fair to Murphy, he doesn’t buy into the whole North vs South debate, obviously, having played the majority of his career in the north. However, he did concede that it may factor into some players’ thinking when choosing a club.
Danny Murphy believes James Maddison’s next move comes down to ambition
James Maddison was brought up as a prime example as he’s currently in the middle of a tug-of-war between Newcastle and Tottenham.
Murphy said: “If you look at Maddison for example, we’re talking about him: Newcastle, Tottenham, that is an option. Newcastle are in the Champions League and are very likely to be there most years from now.
“So are you going to sacrifice already playing in the Champions League?
“So from a footballing perspective you’d be going to Newcastle, from a location perspective, most people would favour London over Newcastle. That’s not against Newcastle that’s just the way it is, so that would depend on Maddison’s ambition and what he wants from his life.”
As much as I find the North/South thing a facile argument, I think Murphy has hit the nail on the head here. If it comes down to a player’s ambition, surely they’re going to chose the club that offers them the most chance of success, and right now between Tottenham and Newcastle, it’s the latter.
The reality is Newcastle are a club on the rise and Tottenham are on the decline. The Magpies finished four places above Spurs last season, bagging Champions League football when Spurs fell out of the European spots on the final game of the season.
Newcastle have Eddie Howe who is the hottest manager on the block right now in terms of growth and potential, Spurs have just brought in Ange Postecoglu from Celtic after going through three gaffers last term.
From a footballing standpoint there’s only one winner …
It’s clear to any outsider that Newcastle is the one to choose there … unless you’re just all about materialistic things and projecting a lifestyle. That’s the only reason you’d want to go to London.
However, that’s ignoring everything Newcastle and the North East has to offer. The only time that North vs South argument holds water is when a Northern club is trying to get a player who’s only ever lived in London to move away.
So if James Maddison is more about his career than his lifestyle, he chooses Newcastle. Simple as that.
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