JAMES MADDISON says he could never hate Gareth Southgate.
Even though he broke his heart by leaving him out of England's Euro '24 squad this summer.
Instead, Maddison intends to harness the searing pain of that rejection to fuel his anger and frustration at being snubbed by his nation.
And use it to inspire him to reach greater heights than ever before this season.
"I was devastated to miss out on the Euros," confessed the straight-talking Spurs midfielder in his first interview since England lost to Spain in the final… without him.
At 27, Maddison was in his prime, yet he was one of three high-profile shock omissions from Southgate's 26-man squad when he named it in June - along with Jack Grealish and Harry Maguire.
It's taken time for the hurt to heal.
"I trained really well in the build up. I trained well with England as well," Maddison revealed.
"We had the warm-up game against North Macedonia and I felt I played well in that, so it was disappointing to miss out.
"But you've got no choice other than to accept it because you can’t change it, once it’s happened.
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"Gareth's a great man and I had a good chat with him about it.
"I was disappointed. He explained his reasoning. It was never personal.
"He’s a good person. We have a great relationship.
"I messaged him not long ago to congratulate him on his managerial career with England.
"There’s no hatred towards him.
"I knew it was a business decision and he did what he thought was best for the team.
"I didn’t agree with him - no doubt about that - I felt I could have bought something to the squad."
Maddison says it took some fatherly advice from his dad to help him deal with the bitter disappointment - and admits he has a point to prove this season.
"Of course I have something to prove," he said.
"Setbacks are set-ups for comebacks. I’ve seen that quote somewhere.
"It’s how you deal with adversity. My network around me, my parents, partner, agent, the manager - they wouldn’t let me dwell on it.
"I knew I would come back with a hunger. I knew I’d be ready by game one to have a good season.
"I want to show the gaffer, the fans, my team-mates that I can be back consistently to my best.
"I couldn’t quite find that post-injury. But it’s always about how you respond.
"My support network - and my dad especially - would never let that define me.
"Dad would never let me be upset. Even though he was upset for me, like any parent would be.
"He was hungry for the new season and I’m hungry to do well this season.
"He wanted me to use my disappointment as motivation to remind me that I can and should be at that level.
"It's about using it as fuel to be good for Tottenham this season.
"I’m desperate to be a top player for the whole season, stay fit and show everyone the best version of myself."
For 45 minutes against his old club Leicester City on Monday night, Maddison showed the watching world what England had been missing in the summer.
He found pockets of space between the lines and tormented the Foxes defence with his clever flicks and laser-accurate crosses.
After 33 minutes he shared a knowing look with Brennan Johnson before a free-kick.
Then as Leicester's players braced themselves for a shot at goal - Maddison picked Johnson out at the back post with a delicate disguised cross which the winger volleyed inches wide.
"I never ever doubt myself," he said.
"There’s always going to be outside noise. Every player has to deal with it.
"I had no doubt that in the first game of the season I was going to be ready to go and put in a good performance. I felt like I did that.
"I did some of the build-up stuff well, maybe I could have been a bit more clinical with the final pass if I’m being harsh on myself. But I’m always self-critical.
"Pre-season is pre-season but when the Premier League comes and the big games and it’s furious, it’s a completely different ball-game.
"But that’s where I thrive and I knew I was ready. I’m just disappointed we didn’t get three points.
"We should have been three or four up in the first half. If we were a little bit more ruthless we could have been out of sight.
"But I know this place better than anyone. When they get a little bit of momentum, the fans here get behind the team.
"We didn’t have as much control over the second half. But we should be getting three points at places like this.
"It’s Tottenham Hotspur, no disrespect to Leicester, of course, but they are a newly-promoted team.
"We’re a big club, what we want to achieve and what we are striving for, we need to come away with three points."
The fact that Spurs couldn't seal the deal will be seen by many as further proof that Ange Postecoglou's men are too flaky to mount a serious challenge.
Maddison disputes that analysis and said: "The only important messages we need to listen to are the manager’s. We know what we are capable of.
"Nights like this, you lot in the media will get carried away about Spurs dropping points from winning positions but it’s all outside noise.
"It’s about what we do within the walls of the training ground and our stadium.
"It’s about blocking you all out to get to what we want to achieve."