Speaking on a recent episode of the Last Word On Spurs podcast, Ricky Sacks, Lee McQueen, Jamie Brown and Chris Cowlin discussed several of the pressing topics surrounding Tottenham Hotspur at present, including the current struggles of Dele Alli.
Having only featured in five games across all competitions for Spurs this season, prior to their clash with Royal Antwerp on Thursday, and being left out of the squad entirely in four of the club’s six Premier League fixtures, it is hard to argue that 2020/21 has been the best campaign of Alli’s career thus far.
Things did not improve for the £46.8 million-rated 24-year-old in his sixth appearance of the season, either, as, after being awarded a rare start against Antwerp by Jose Mourinho, the midfielder found himself being withdrawn at half time.
Alli’s struggles were one subject of conversation on a recent episode of the Last Word On Spurs podcast, in which several of the podcasters had their say on the current situation regarding the midfielder.
McQueen said: “I think that he’s going through a really tough time. It’s the first time in his career, for a prolonged period, that he’s been dropped – and he has been dropped and left out of the squad – I think that’s difficult. At the end of the day, he’s going through a really tough time. He’s one of us, and actually, we should be supporting him.
While Cowlin added: “When you look at how much game time he’s had so far this season – 45 minutes on the opening weekend against Everton, 60 minutes is the longest he’s played in a game, against [Shkendija] away in the Europa League, 45 minutes against Maccabi Haifa, only 21 minutes against [Manchester] United, [28] minutes last week [against LASK] and 45 minutes [against Royal Antwerp].
“For a player that we know, like Dele Alli, who we know what he can do, the performances just aren’t there at the moment. What I’m worried about now is how much game time he will actually get in the future. Because he seems to be one of those players that Jose Mourinho really has it in for at the moment.”
Do you think Dele Alli should leave the club on loan in January?
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TIF Thoughts on the podcasters’ comments regarding Dele Alli…
From their comments, it is clear that both McQueen and Cowlin have some level of sympathy with Alli, as they both seem aware of the midfielder’s ability, however, both admit that they believe he is indeed going through a tough time at present.
And, it appears that Cowlin, in particular, is concerned about how much game time Alli will get going forwards, as he clearly believes that Mourinho is not a fan of the England international at present.