Maddison got a deserved standing ovation when he was substituted for Conor Gallagher after 69 minutes, but the reception for Kulusevski was arguably even more rapturous as he finally took to the pitch again after such a long battle to regain fitness.
It was Maddison, however, who claimed the major plaudits after he was the driving force behind the win that has proved so elusive – his positive approach playing with a smile on his face provides refreshment of its own after such a depressing sequence of results.
He was eager to get on the ball, was constantly probing and prompting, all before he inevitably tired after the break.
“I spoke to the gaffer this weekend about it, feeling like it was the right moment for me to go back into the starting XI after a bit of a stop-start start to the season,” Maddison told Sky Sports.
“I just wanted to play well and show my abilities, show what the team has missed the last 18 months. The gaffer asked me to play and wanted to enjoy watching from the side. Hopefully I did that, and a goal is always nice.”
If his aim was to show what Spurs have been missing, this was very much mission accomplished.
And as well as Maddison and Kulusevski, Marmoush will gain confidence from his strike, another superb curling effort that gave Rushworth no chance.
De Zerbi will know this is only a start, with a tough trip to face Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Saturday evening (17:30 BST).
He welcomed the return of Maddison and Kulusevski, saying: “They are different players, different talents, different personalities. With them in the dressing room there is a different atmosphere.”
What changes the atmosphere in the dressing room and beyond most are victories.
Now De Zerbi and Spurs can actually build on three points at last, and the sights of Maddison and Kulusevski back in action will have the Italian hoping they can accelerate an improvement after the misery of recent times.
