As agents circle, is Alli losing appetite for daily grind?
SeVeNTH was probably not the Brave New World Mauricio Pochettino was contemplating when he came up with the title of his autobiography-diary.
Aside from a little hiccup at the start of this campaign when the table was barely formed, it is Tottenham’s lowest league position since october 2015.
one imagines it will be temporary, too. Tottenham have too many good players to be falling long. yet they need Dele Alli; and, increasingly, he is deserting them.
He is young, and young players can lose form; but what is most troubling about Alli this season is the inconsistency. He rises to the occasion against real Madrid and then slinks into anonymity in a mundane league fixture.
Pochettino discusses Alli in his book. He writes of being concerned by the avatar picture on his WhatsApp page, which depicts a young man surrounded by enemies.
‘People who all want a piece of him,’ Pochettino notes. ‘The danger remains, as is often the case, that he will forget what has got him to this point. I have had to repeat to him this season.
‘The other risk is whether those around him know how to treat a top-level professional. I often think about the WhatsApp photo. John McDermott (the head of Spurs’ academy) says that when the trough is full, the pigs come from all over to feed.
‘ The coach used to be the dominant voice but now the player listens to so many others, especially those who promise the world.’
Certainly, Alli’s decision to search for a new agent this season makes him particularly vulnerable to ambitious sales pitches.
What 21-year- old would not find appealing talk of moves to the biggest clubs in europe, and freedom from the restraints of Tottenham’s wage structure?
Pochettino’s thoughts seem particularly apt given what he has seen of Alli this season — but these printed opinions relate to the previous campaign, when Alli’s form was strong. Pochettino sounds like a man who knows what is coming — and knows the consequences of just one underwhelming season, too.
Given the options being placed before Alli, whether genuine or not, Tottenham must be in the Champions League next season.