Neal Maupay has renewed his feud with James Maddison after their notorious clash during Tottenham’s 3-2 win over Brentford last month.
It all started when Maupay scored in a thrilling encounter and the striker taunted Maddison by imitating his celebration of a dart throw, joined by teammate Ivan Toney.
Maddison and Maupay exchanged heated words after the goal, and then the Spurs star slammed the Frenchman in a post-match interview with TNT Sports.
The two players then referred to each other in separate Instagram posts: Maddison mocked Maupay for not scoring enough goals to have his own celebration, while the Bees striker said he had scored more goals and had fewer crosses in his career than his rival.
Speaking to The Times a few weeks later, Maupay reflected on the incident and admitted that he found the whole situation amusing.
“He took it very personally, it’s funny,” he said. “I threw an arrow and he was so offended that he posted a picture of me on his Instagram.
‘But if I give something, I have to be able to take it.’
Maupay has become known as a pantomime villain in recent years, his antics putting several clubs and players in League One in a bad mood, including Man City’s Kyle Walker last week.
The striker, who claims he has “never crossed the line”, is in impressive form this season and has scored five goals since returning to Brentford on loan after a dismal spell at Everton.
However, the 27-year-old dismissed suggestions that his celebrations against Spurs had backfired, with Brennan Johnson later mocking the Frenchman after Ange Postecoglou’s team scored three goals in eight minutes of the second half to turn the game around.
He added: “We didn’t lose against Tottenham because of my celebration.
‘We would have been in big trouble in the league if we needed a player to cheer them on to win.
Asked what he said to Maupay on the pitch after the heated clash on 31 January, Maddison told TNT Sports: ‘I just said to him that he probably hadn’t scored enough of his own goals in the last couple of years to have his own celebration, so he had to copy mine.
“A short story, but one that ended well for us.
The Brentford striker later responded on Instagram, saying: ‘Unfortunately we couldn’t get the win. I’ve scored more goals and conceded less than James Maddison in my career. Here we go again on Monday, Bees.
The Tottenham star also posted a photo of Maupay celebrating on his Instagram, writing: “Short story … COYS”.
Maupay responded to Maddison’s post by saying, “Ahaha, free rent,” and kissing emojis.
Meanwhile, Brentford and Spurs suffered defeats to Liverpool and Wolves respectively this weekend, leaving the Bees in 14th place and Postecoglou’s team dropping to fifth.