OPINION
Tottenham Hotspur fans have received an exciting boost with the news that Dele Alli will be available to face Manchester City in the Premier League on Monday.
As reported on the club’s official Twitter account, the 22-year-old attacking midfielder has returned to training with the rest of the squad after recovering from a hamstring injury.
TEAM NEWS: @dele_official (hamstring) has returned to training and is available for selection. pic.twitter.com/Fu8q5b7jI4
— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) October 26, 2018
Alli has become a key player for Tottenham since his £5million switch from MK Dons in 2015, and the news that he is available against the league leaders is a massive boost for all involved.
The young dynamo has a knack of delivering in the big games as well, with significant goals coming against several big sides in recent seasons.
That being said, manager Mauricio Pochettino must break every Tottenham fans’ heart on Monday by holding Alli back from the starting lineup.
His importance to the team over the course of the season is far greater than for just one game, and the risk of him aggravating the injury is high.
Alli’s latest lay-off came as a result of a recurring injury after the club thought he had recovered from his last one, and for that to happen again would be a disaster.
Tottenham have enough attacking firepower to deal without Alli for one more game, especially considering the form of Erik Lamela and the promising return of Christian Eriksen.
Alli is far too important to risk on Monday, at least from the start, and Pochettino must disappoint the Spurs fanbase by leaving him on the bench or even out of the squad completely.