Mauricio Pochettino has revealed how Dele Alli has a low boredom threshold and thrives on intense competition.
The manager shared some insight on the Tottenham attacking midfielder at his media conference on Tuesday ahead of Wednesday’s Champions League showdown against Inter Milan.
Pochettino explained how Alli comes alive when Spurs play the marquee fixtures when the pressure is tuned up to its maximum.
“He gets bored quickly if he doesn’t feel the pressure,” Pochettino said, as quoted by the official club website. “When he’s with competition and pressure he loves it.”
?? Mauricio on @dele_official: "He loves the big competition. He gets bored quickly if he doesn’t feel the pressure. When he’s with competition and pressure he loves it."#COYS pic.twitter.com/M0AZNGQ6LJ
— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) November 27, 2018
OPINION
Effectively, Alli is the opposite to a flat-track bully. He doesn’t have the same appetite for regulation fixtures and routine matches that Tottenham are expected to win. Instead, he lives for the matches that get the blood pumping, the supporters chanting and which the pressure to stand up and be counted is at its most intense. This explains why Alli has such a brilliant track record against Chelsea, who he scored against once again on Saturday, and Arsenal, as well as delivering the performance of his career in the Champions League against Real Madrid a year ago. Pochettino’s explanation doesn’t quite square with the Spurs star’s quiet World Cup, or a generally underwhelming 2018 to date, although it does provide some insight in to Alli’s character and what makes him tick, on and off the field. It suggests that the 22-year-old needs some careful man-management to get him fit and firing. Fans will certainly be hoping that the Inter showdown can coax a matchwinning performance from the England ace.