Tottenham Hotspur

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James Maddison says he will "apologise to anyone" who thought his celebration after scoring for Tottenham against his boyhood club Coventry City was "badly timed".

The 29-year-old, who made 42 senior appearances for the Sky Blues, scored within 14 minutes of his first Premier League start since 27 April 2025, having faced a long road to recovery from an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury.

Maddison's celebrations included kissing the Tottenham badge on his shirt - a decision which has garnered some backlash from Coventry City fans.

The midfielder has now explained the reasoning behind his celebration and apologised to anyone he offended.

"I had already planned that my first goal I was kissing the badge of this club who has supported me and my family through the darkest days of my career over the past 18 months," Maddison wrote on X, external.

"I absolutely adore and love Coventry City - all of my close friends and family know that. I am a fan and I always will be.

"I will 100% apologise to anyone who thought the timing was bad, my first goal back just happened to be against my hometown club.

"Good luck to Frank [Lampard] and the boys for the rest of the season. PUSB."

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"Football, for me, is like breathing. Imagine you can't breathe for two years?"

Those were the words of Dejan Kulusevski after he made his first appearance in 526 days in Tottenham's 3-1 win over Coventry City on Monday.

The 26-year-old first suffered what was described as a "knock" in May 2025, but subsequently endured a hellish recovery which featured patella surgery, a second procedure and multiple setbacks.

However, he was given a hero's reception when he was introduced as a late substitute on his long-awaited return.

"Everything feels great. I have been working harder than you can ever imagine," Kulusevski said.

"The journey felt impossible. It was the most difficult it could be, but I had a feeling I was going to come back to play football. I just had to believe and that is what I did.

"I had to tell my closest ones it might not work out, just a couple of months ago, but in my heart, I always knew it would work out.

"I kept working - 10 hours every day when no-one is watching - so when everything was impossible and everyone gave up, I never gave up.

"It has been an amazing journey, even if it is hard sometimes. Hard is beautiful and I am so grateful that I had to experience it."

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Kulusevski's return coincided with Tottenham's first win of the season, and he believes this could mark a fresh start for him and the club.

"I am so grateful that [fans] missed me playing. It means a lot and I am here to show them a better me. And a better me will be a better Spurs so we will be good," he added.

"It was amazing. It was more emotional I think this morning. It was a beautiful day and I'm so happy we won.

"Now I am ready to play football. I see myself a little different now. I think I am a different man now. Same guy, same guy that wants to play football, but a little bit smarter.

"I was not [nervous]. I was ready to play and it was fun."

We asked for your thoughts after Monday's Premier League game between Tottenham and Coventry.

Here are some of your comments:

Tottenham fans

Clive: Brilliant win... De Zerbi's hard work starting to pay off.

Iain: Great result, maybe not the best performance with levels nowhere near what we produced at Old Trafford, but we will take it and move on. Can't see what Lampard is moaning about. It was a totally accidental elbow from Marmoush. He should perhaps focus on how easily his defender gave up the fight to get goal-side. Slightly embarrassing.

Mike: The win flattered us despite Maddison's quality and we need to show more urgency and desire to get at opponents. No doubt some players are low on confidence but most need to deliver more, especially to justify transfer fees and places in starting 11. We need to see a real effort and performance against Chelsea, whatever the outcome.

Andy: Finally a win!. And finally an overdue start for Maddison, our only creator, showing why he has to be our number 10 in every match from now on if we are going to be a top-six team again. Please De Zerbi - decide on who will be playing alongside Tonali and Maddison in midfield and stick to that combo.

Martin: Three points but still look too fragile at the back for my liking. The score flatters us, I never thought we had full control of the game. But a win is a win.

Coventry fans

Ian: All Sky Blue fans who are old enough will have seen videos on the Coventry Evening Telegraph's site of when James Maddison was aged about five and already displaying great skills with a football. I find it unfathomable why we didn't have a defensive midfielder to man mark Maddison from the start of the game.

Dick: Coventry's strikers have to learn how to hold up the ball so the midfield can catch up. Time after time they turned over the ball before Rudoni or Sakamoto could help out. Poor attacking display. Rushworth looked poor. The third goal he dived like a sack of potatoes.

Victor: To be honest I am disappointed by the way we didn't compete. Thought we were poor going forward and the defence looks shaky apart from Thomas and Pinnock. Goalie is not as comfortable as last year. Big games coming up.

Lee: Some strange decisions. Grimes is too slow, lightweight and was hiding for two goals, BTA is a headless chicken, we should've started better players if we're serious about staying in this league.

Terence: Relegation I'm afraid. I reckon we will get 30 points.

Tottenham boss Roberto de Zerbi, spoke to BBC Sport after his side's victory against Coventry City: "I am delighted for the result, the attitude, the spirit and the reaction after the goal we conceded. Honestly we did not play so well like the last games. But now for our responsibility they deserve credit as they defended very well and compact.

"When we went outside from [Mohammed] Kudus and [Andrew] Robertson we didn't push the ball with the right speed. We were too predictable maybe playing three at the back. We played three at the back for injury reasons, first of all.

"We play with Kudus right wing and Robertson left wing and with three number 10s with different characteristics. We scored two goals with these players but we can't forget [Dominic] Solanke as he played very well.

"Now we have to understand we are able to win because after two or three seasons like this, the mental aspect is crucial. We have to thank the fans, especially in the last part of the game they were fantastic, they have suffered a lot. We have to push, we have to improve the quality of the play for sure but we are a good team, a very good team."

On Dejan Kulusevski returning: "Fantastic moment and fantastic human. We celebrated him in the dressing room after the game. He is maybe the most important thing after this win."

Spurs midfielder James Maddison, spoke to Sky Sports: "I hoped [to start]. I spoke to the gaffer about it this week and feeling like the right moment for me to go back into the starting 11 after a stop-start, start to the season.

"I just wanted to show my quality and show what the team's missed in the last 18 months since my last start. The gaffer asked me to play and said he wanted to enjoy watching me from the side so hopefully I did that, and getting the goal is always nice."

On his goal: "They're just a bit blurry; they're the ones you dream of. Recovering from the ACL last year, those dark days. They're the ones you dream of, those goals. Always the light at the tunnel for you.

"And for Dejan Kulusevski I felt proud for him because I knew exactly how he felt. Those moments and those goals they make it all worth it."

On his game position: "That's where I operate best, in the pockets on the outside of the lines. I was popping up on the left, right and centrally and that's where I'm at my best. Between the lines and being able to pick up the pockets of space and that's where the goal came from."

Did you know?

• Since making his Premier League debut in August 2018, Maddison has scored 21 goals from outside the box, at least two more than any other player (Kevin De Bruyne & James Ward-Prowse, 19 each).

• Tottenham's victory was just their sixth win in their last 37 home Premier League games (D10 L21), and their fourth league victory overall in 2026 (P27 D10 L13).

• For the first time in 36 games, Spurs scored more than two plus goals in a Premier League match, while it was the first time they scored three plus goals on home soil in the league since MD1 last season against Burnley (3-0).

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Roberto de Zerbi has used all the tools at his disposal to discover the missing spark in struggling Tottenham Hotspur, from acting as an amateur psychologist to team bonding dinners, then a sunshine break in Marbella.

The answer, at least when Spurs finally moved off the bottom of the table with their first Premier League win this season against Coventry City, came in the shape of James Maddison as he made his first start in 18 months.

He missed most of last season after suffering an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury in pre-season, before fracturing his shoulder in the opening-weekend defeat at Brentford in this campaign.

The 29-year-old finally made it back into the Spurs starting line-up to face Coventry - and delivered in spectacular style to set them on the way to a 3-1 victory that De Zerbi hopes will finally give their season lift-off.

Maddison could barely keep the smile from his face as he warmed up, then made his mark in the 14th minute by showing what Spurs have been missing with a brilliant right-foot finish from 20 yards, taking Mohammed Kudus' pass first time to arc a sweeping strike high beyond Coventry City keeper Carl Rushworth.

It was a moment of sweet relief for Maddison, the goal getting loud gasps of admiration from Spurs supporters as it was shown several times on the stadium's big screens.

Even though the goal came against his former club, Maddison celebrated with his trademark imaginary dart throwing motion before kissing the badge on his Spurs shirt.

Maddison's significance to Spurs is illustrated by the fact they had won just 12 out of 57 Premier League games since his last top-flight goal, in a 1-0 victory against Manchester United in February 2025. They had averaged less than a point a game since then.

And since his last start, at Liverpool on 27 April 2025, Spurs had won only 11 of 49 league games in between, losing 23.

Spurs cannot kid themselves that this was a glorious victory. It was actually only their sixth win in the past 37 home league games - drawing 10 and losing 21 - and just their fourth league victory overall in 2026, having played 27, drawn 10 and lost 13.

And it was the first time they scored three goals or more at home in the league since the opening day of last season, when they beat Burnley 3-0 in Thomas Frank's first game in charge.

There are still too many nerves around Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and in De Zerbi's team for calm and relaxation.

Read more from Phil

Michael Emons
BBC Sport journalist

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Tottenham fans got to celebrate a rare and vital home victory after a poor start to their campaign in which they drew three and lost three of their opening six league games.

Wins for Fulham and Bournemouth earlier in this round of fixtures left Spurs as the last club to register a victory in the Premier League.

Roberto de Zerbi's team looked to be in total control at the break against a Coventry City side that had not registered a shot on target in the first half.

James Maddison had begun his career at Coventry and scored against his former side with a stunning opening goal.

But Tottenham, who only avoided relegation on the final day of the 2025-26 season, made it hard for themselves as they conceded soon after the restart.

Just as the home fans were getting nervous though, Omar Marmoush scored with a powerful shot, but Coventry were unhappy the goal was allowed to stand, with the elbow on Milan Van Ewijk judged accidental.

Newly promoted Coventry had won their past two Premier League matches and had eight minutes of stoppage time to find an equaliser, but could not create a decisive opportunity, before Davies made it 3-1.

The returns of Maddison and Dejan Kulusevski provide a huge boost to Tottenham.

Both suffered knee injuries at the end of the 2024-25 campaign, missing Tottenham's Europa League final victory and then in Kulusevski's case the entirety of last season.

The Spurs fans gave Kulusevski a huge reception when he warmed up in the first half, repeatedly singing his name in the second before he came on as an 85th-minute substitute to one of the biggest cheers of the night.

The only negatives for Tottenham were injuries to defenders Andrew Robertson and Tosin Adarabioyo, while Marmoush also limped off when being replaced by Kulusevski.

Phil McNulty
Chief football writer

Tottenham starting XI:

Antonin Kinsky: Fumbled first-half corner and not great with his feet. 5

Tosin Adarabioyo: Powerful in the air and did well in the physical challenges until he went off injured. 6

Jan Paul van Hecke: Disappointing night. Uncertain moments and lost possession for Coventry City's goal, but did make one brave clearance. 5

Micky van de Ven: Superb tackle to stop Brandon Thomas-Asante in the first half and solid all-round display. 7

Archie Gray: Busy and did his best to give Spurs some creative edge. 6

Sandro Tonali: Occasional flashes but still struggles to justify his £100m price tag. Needs to produce more. 6

James Maddison: Brilliant strike on his first start for 18 months. Always prompting and probing. Revelled in his return to the starting line-up until understandably tiring. 8

Andrew Robertson: Some trademark surging runs and always willing to join the attack but picked up an injury. 6

Mohammed Kudus: Mixed night. Some good things but too often short of end product. 5

Omar Marmoush: Had struggled but then scored a superb goal. 6

Dominic Solanke: Tireless but little luck. Booked and had a shot on the turn over in first half. 5

Tottenham substitutes:

Conor Gallagher (on 69, Maddison): Not able to get into the game. 5

Mateus Fernandes (on 69, Tosin): Little impact. 5

Ben Davies (on 69, Robertson): Experienced head to close out the win and got himself a goal. 6

Mathys Tel (on 87 Marmoush).

Dejan Kulusevski (on 87 Kudus).

Subs not used: Dubravka, Senesi, Olusesi, Williams-Barnett.

Read the full article and see how you rated the players

Whether you were at the game or following from elsewhere, we want to know what you learned.

Have your say on Tottenham's performance

What did you make of Coventry's display?

Reaction and analysis to follow - and come back on Tuesday for a selection of your replies.

Sami Mokbel
Senior football correspondent

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Tosin Adarabioyo is set to make his full Premier League debut for Tottenham against Coventry City on Monday.

The 29-year-old centre-back arrived from Chelsea on transfer deadline day but has so far made just one substitute appearance in the top flight for Spurs, coming on as a late substitute in the 0-0 draw against Everton last month, but he did start the Carabao Cup defeat by Liverpool.

Tottenham spent the past few days on a training camp in Marbella, where head coach Roberto de Zerbi is understood to have worked on potential tweaks to the team's defensive approach for the home fixture against Frank Lampard's newly promoted side.

If, as expected, Adarabioyo does play, it will be the defender's first top-flight start since May, which was for Chelsea against Nottingham Forest.

Tottenham remain without a league win this season and go into the match against Coventry bottom of the table on three points. The visitors are 16th with six points having secured back-to-back victories either side of the international break.

Tottenham will be fresh from their training camp in Marbella and we are about to find out if it worked.

If they don't beat Coventry and get their first win of the season, then they will probably have to go back out there next week as well.

Being serious, they do look like they are improving already and they played well against Manchester United last week.

Coventry are a dangerous counter-attacking team, and their pace in forward areas will cause problems, but this is going to be Tottenham's night.

Sutton's prediction: 2-1

Read the full predictions and have your say here

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Hearing about Tottenham's team-bonding trip to Marbella last week made me think about the similar methods I used as a manager to build team morale.

While some things have changed from my day, the idea behind taking your players away to a new environment where they will benefit from spending a lot of time together has not.

Roberto de Zerbi needed time with his players on the training pitch after their poor start to the season, to bed them in and build a proper team.

He will have used their warm-weather camp in southern Spain to do more of that, getting to know what is almost a new squad of players.

With De Zerbi being cut from Italian cloth, I'm sure the players will have been working mornings and afternoons to drill in the manager's principles in respect to team shape and direction.

But that's not the only purpose of taking them away - he will have been able to also monitor the different personalities within the group away from the grass.

If the trip has worked then, as well as getting them ready to face Coventry City on Monday night, I'm sure he will now understand the strengths and weaknesses of each individual, on and off the field, for the very first time.

A few eyebrows were raised about Tottenham going away so early in the season, but it makes perfect sense to me when you consider so many new players arrived there this summer.

When I was Stoke manager, I often took my teams away to Austria in our pre-season for the same reasons De Zerbi and Tottenham have gone to Spain.

Those trips were not only set up to test the players' fitness, but also to see how the group worked together.

I've always believed in building a family togetherness within the dressing room, with a commitment from every player to the benefit of the team.

The extreme tests that we asked our players to do over that 10-day period brought out an inner determination to fulfil the tasks given to them and, in my opinion, helped us through some tough times early on in our Premier League campaigns.

Watching the lads slowly bond together on the training pitch and at meal times was great to see - and I found out a lot about all of them, good and bad.

Read Tony Pulis' full column here

Tottenham are continuing to monitor Eintracht Frankfurt's German forward Younes Ebnoutalib, 23. (TeamTalk), external

Tottenham are interested in signing Japanese midfielder Yuito Suzuki, 24, from Freiburg as Roberto de Zerbi looks to strengthen his squad. (Fussball News via CaughtOffside), external

Arsenal and Tottenham are keeping an eye on Barcelona youngster Xavi Espart, 19, but they could be held back by the Spanish defender's significant release clause. (CaughtOffside), external

Want more transfer stories? Read Monday's full gossip column

Follow the gossip column on BBC Sport

Paul Birch
BBC Sport journalist

Tottenham go in search of a first league win of the season against a Coventry City side who have roared into form with back-to-back victories. BBC Sport takes a look at some of the key themes going into Monday's fixture.

Can Tottenham banish home woes to record a first victory?

In the wake of their draw with Manchester United, Tottenham headed to Marbella for a few days of warm weather training and, more importantly, squad bonding. "The target is to build the team," head coach Roberto de Zerbi explained. "We are a great group of players, but we are not a team yet."

His side certainly looked like more of a cohesive unit at Old Trafford, but their slick approach play was squandered by yet more profligacy in front of goal as their winless start stretched to six league matches.

Only two top-flight sides have completed more passes in the final third than Spurs' 770 and just three teams have had more touches in the opposition box than their 182. Yet a shot conversion rate of 3.6% is the worst in the league and De Zerbi's side have underperformed their xG by 3.6 goals.

Three goals after six league matches is the second lowest tally in their history, beaten only by the two scored at the start of 2006-07.

They are still yet to lead in a league match this season or score a goal before the 86th minute.

One thing they still cannot count on is home comforts. They have managed a paltry five wins in their past 36 league matches at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, dating back to November 2024.

Moreover, they have fallen behind in a remarkable 52 of their 79 home league games since the start of 2022-23.

Sky-high Sky Blues looking to make it a hat-trick of wins

Coventry travel to north London on the crest of a wave having made it back-to-back wins in style with a 4-1 thrashing of Newcastle. Six points from six games is the same as Manchester United have mustered and is a long way from the zero points and zero goals they had taken from their opening four matches.

These crucial - and potentially season altering - victories over Nottingham Forest and Newcastle mean the Sky Blues have the chance to become only the fourth top-flight side to lose their opening four matches to a season then win three in a row after Derby County in 1899-00, Arsenal in 1923-24 and Aston Villa in 1997-98.

A victory would also mark the first time they have won three Premier League matches in succession since a run of five between January and February 1998 under Gordon Strachan.

Although their most famous win of all came against Tottenham in the 1987 FA Cup final, their past five meetings have all ended in defeat and they last won away at Spurs in 1997.

However, that victory was particularly memorable as their 2-1 win on the final day of the season helped secure their top-flight status in highly dramatic circumstances.

In 19th position at kick off, goals from Dion Dublin and Paul Williams helped them leapfrog both Sunderland and Middlesbrough to finish one place and one point above the drop zone.

One man who does knows how to avoid defeat against Tottenham is head coach Frank Lampard.

During his playing days he won more matches against Spurs than he did against any other opponent and lost just eight of 41 encounters. As a manager, he has been beaten in only two of six meetings with the Lilywhites.

George Booth
BBC Sport journalist

Tottenham boss Roberto de Zerbi has been speaking to the media before Monday's Premier League game against Coventry City at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium (kick-off 20:00 BST).

Here are the key lines from his news conference:

• Forward Savio will be ruled out "for some weeks" after suffering a "muscular problem" after the 1-1 draw at Manchester United.

• De Zerbi also confirmed Swedish midfielder Lucas Bergvall will miss Monday's game after feeling "pain" in his knee. The Spurs boss added: "The day after Manchester on Sunday, he came to the training ground to our medical staff and I think [he is out for] two weeks."

• Midfielder Dejan Kulusevski will make a return to the matchday squad after being sidelined since May 2025. The Spurs boss said the 26-year-old's return was "great news" and that Kulusevski "deserves to feel emotion on the pitch".

• Pedro Porro will continue to recover from a hamstring injury, and the Spain defender may return against Chelsea.

• On Richarlison playing with the under-21s, De Zerbi said: "It's not my problem anymore" and that he has "no problem with nobody".

• He added: "You have to ask Vinai [Venkatesham] (chief executive) and Johan [Lange] (sporting director). I know as a coach I have to accept, to support, to take responsibility, even if it is not my responsibility. If he wants to speak about me, he knows where he can find me. I don't want to speak anymore because my focus is on the Coventry game and the focus is for us to improve my team."

• On facing Coventry: "Coventry is a good team. They played a fantastic Championship last season. They deserved to win the league and to play in the Premier League this season. They played with energy and quality. We want to show ourselves to be good and win the games, especially if we deserve to win the games."

• Spurs' training camp trip to Marbella "worked well", and it allowed players to make "connections".

• He added: "I think we have to improve in the result, not in the quality of the performances, but you have to find all the ways to improve. Ways to be better, ways to become stronger as a group. The players spent time together, and they stayed together a lot."

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Tottenham fan Kish Patel has been discussing Roberto de Zerbi's options at centre-back for Monday's match against Coventry.

"[Marcos] Senesi and [Jan Paul] van Hecke played very well against Manchester United. They cut through United's press with ease and broke multiple lines at once to get us back to front very quicky.

"I thought that was a great plan that worked well, but the Coventry game is a whole different proposition. They will be very compact and look to block the central spaces, not allowing Spurs to cut through as easily as they did against Manchester United. I don't think the direct pass is going to be on.

"The trade-off is not worth it to drop [Micky] van de Ven because I don't think those centre-backs are going to have as much relevance in the game as they did against Manchester United.

"It will be about playing shorter passes, going around the block and playing through the flanks a bit more. For that reason, I think Van de Ven has to come back in because he is such a good recovery defender.

"Personally, I would like to see Senesi partner Van de Ven and is slightly better defensively than Van Hecke."

Listen to the full discussion on BBC Sounds here or by pressing play below

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Can James Maddison be the missing piece of the puzzle for Tottenham?

Former Coventry City academy coach Richard Stevens believes the midfielder has the ability "to connect everything together" for Roberto de Zerbi's side, who remain winless in the Premier League after six matches.

Maddison, who is coming back from injury, came off the bench at Manchester United on Saturday for a fifth time this season and made an impact as Spurs fought back to leave Old Trafford with a point.

"His driver is, 'am I playing 90 minutes and can I go and score some goals and ignite the fans?'," said Stevens. "Even in a 10-minute spell, when he comes on he takes the ball and he makes things happen.

"He makes things tick and he gets the team playing forwards. He gets the team moving up the pitch.

"And, good grief, Tottenham have had a tough time. They're an unbelievable football club and you know the players they have, maybe he's the bit that's going to connect everything together.

"I hope he's going to return and he's going to connect everything together for Tottenham because I think he has that ability to do that."

Maddison will face his boyhood club Coventry City on Monday for just the third time since being sold on transfer deadline day in 2016 aged 19.

"Everybody's really proud and Coventry will be proud as well," added Stevens. "They'll be looking forward to playing against him, I'm sure."