Alli made for this moment

DELE ALLI believes he was born to play in the World Cup.

And as the pressure begins to bite for England, Tottenham star Alli says he’ll take to the pitch against Colombia in Tuesday’s last-16 showdown knowing Russia 2018 is his natural playground. The 22-year-old midfielder – fit again after a thigh injury – has been working towards this moment all his life.

And he insists he’ll take the big-pressure game in his stride, even though he sometimes has to pinch himself at his meteoric rise.

He said: “I believe I am ready. I feel like this is where I should be.

“When you’re growing up as a kid you want to be playing at the World Cup and in the Champions League.

“I’ve said many times before, there are moments you can’t believe it’s happening. At the same time, I’ve been playing a long time now.

“I was over the moon when selected and I’ve been working as hard as I can to help the team.

“So I’m not going to take it for granted, I’m still fighting every day to get in the team and prove myself.

“I think the World Cup is the highest level. The best teams and players playing against each other.

“But for me and as a team, we’re not scared of anyone. We’re not going to hide.

“We’re confident in ourselves and will go out there and perform to the level we know we can.”