James Maddison jokes he cannot look at Son Heung-min after Tottenham win

There was obviously a miscommunication at the critical time, though. Son went close enough to Madison that it was obvious he believed he would get the shot. The 26-year-old was out of step by the time he launched his strike as a result.

In the immediate aftermath, Maddison was unable to contain his annoyance. Son, in contrast, appeared to be genuinely perplexed. And the former Leicester City player claimed that he needed some space to collect himself before talking to his £22 million teammate.

“We didn’t get in each other’s way, he got in my way! I haven’t spoken to him, I can’t look at him at the minute,” he told BBC Sport.

“I’ll speak to him tomorrow. I was right in front of the goal and he was facing the wrong way but even he’s allowed to make one mistake.”

Understanding building, but not quite telepathic…yet

The good news is that Tottenham was not negatively impacted. But it’s obvious that Maddison would have preferred to add an exclamation point to the triumph at that time.

For Spurs, there were undoubtedly more goals scored. That was arguably obvious when Son appeared immensely sad to be replaced prior to the end of the half.

There will be lots of chances for both Maddison and Son to increase their goal totals over the season given the understanding that the two are developing.

But perhaps that particular instance made clear that they still have some work to do before their comprehension is fully telepathic.