First of all, let's address the elephant in the room, Jamie Vardy has retired from international duty.
Full-time at Turf Moor.
— Leicester City (@LCFC) January 19, 2020
Leicester have such a talented squad! pic.twitter.com/Gt9NAMGlz2
— 90min (@90min_Football) January 19, 2020
Jack Grealish has been mentioned given his impressive campaign for a struggling Aston Villa, but he doesn't boast the dynamic link with Vardy that Maddison does.
Harvey Barnes' fine opening goal against the Clarets will naturally garner the youngster plenty of praise, but it was work by Maddison in midfield and the clever running of Vardy in attack that presented Barnes with the opportunity and opened the space for him to score.
Those two on the pitch together make others better.
Whereas Vardy is lethal in front of goal and you know exactly what you're going to get with him, Maddison has an air of unpredictability about him. Whether it's having a pop at goal from 25-30 yards or a reverse pass into the box, the only person who knows what he's going to do is, yes, Vardy.
Sure, the game at Turf Moor didn't showcase either player in their best light. Firstly, Maddison wasn't as effective as usual for Leicester, often coming out second best to some hefty Burnley challenges, but it's what he's done throughout the season which warrants the above claim.
As for Vardy...well, yeah, a missed penalty isn't exactly going to heighten claims for him to come out of retirement this summer. But forget Turf Moor, forget Sunday, these two are inseparable on a football pitch.
11/17 - Nick Pope saving a Jamie Vardy penalty is the first example of an English goalkeeper saving an English player's penalty in the Premier League since November 2017, when Joe Hart saved a Wayne Rooney penalty. Novelty. pic.twitter.com/2etNLfpXsZ
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) January 19, 2020
Maddison is a better player when he plays with Vardy, and to truly unlock his full potential for England then the 33-year-old needs to line up alongside him.
These two come as a package. Play Maddison then you have to play Vardy. Of course, even if Gareth is bursting to make this duo become a reality, he needs to convince the Leicester top-scorer to follow suit – which itself is another matter entirely.
Source : 90min