Jose’s head over heels to see Alli back on song
SUBLIME STRIKE LEAVES BOSS PURRING
DELE ALLI launched himself into the air and gave his Tottenham comeback bid lift- off with a display brimming with invention, end- product and audacity.
With their place in tomorrow’s last-16 draw already assured after the first leg and much bigger concerns for Jose Mourinho and his players amid their Premier League problems, this match appeared about as meaningless as they come for Spurs.
Alli at least made it memorable with a reminder of what he is capable of His opening goal summed it up, a stunning, instinctive overhead kick.
He was not finished there and set up the first of Carlos Vinicius’s brace and another for substitute Gareth Bale as Spurs routed Auserger Austrians Wolfsberger again. While caution is required given the quality of opposition, this was a significant step forward as Alli looked much more like his old self, roaming freely and thriving.
It is because the old Alli had disappeared that he has found himself out of the picture. With no move materialising in January, clear-the-air talks with Mourinho marked a fresh start.
Mourinho said: ‘ The goal was beautiful. For me, the globality of the performance fo is what mattered. ‘In every aspect he played very well. In this moment when we are going to play every three days, to have Dele back at this level is amazing.’
With a 4-1 first-leg lead, the Spurs team featured nine changes with crucial league games against Burnley, Fulham, Crystal Palace and Arsenal coming up.
Still, they had a job to complete and did so largely thanks to Alli. Mourinho also singled out midfield duo Moussa Sissoko and Harry Winks for praise and the latter began the move that ended with Alli’s stunner, his first goal since the start of December.
After Eric Dier had an escape after appearing to bring down Cheikhou Dieng, Alli sent over a pinpoint cross for Vinicius to head in, before setting up Bale to make it 3-0.
Mourinho blooded an academy trio — debutants Marcel Lavinier and Nile John, plus young striker Dane Scarlett, whose interception led to Vinicius’s second.
Mourinho said of Scarlett: ‘He will be 17 next month and I want him to be part of the first team next season. He is a diamond, a kid with incredible potential.
‘ He’s a striker, a No 9. I’ve been playing him from the sides, similar to Marcus Rashford, and he is very clever.’
TOTTENHAM (4-2-3-1): Hart 6; Doherty 7.5 (Lavinier 74min, 6), Dier 6, Alderweireld 6, Davies 7; Sissoko 7 (John 82), Winks 8.5; Bergwijn 6.5 (Moura 69, 6), ALLI 9 (Scarlett 81), Lamela 7.5 (Bale 69, 7.5); Vinicius 8. Subs not used: Lloris, Reguilon, Son, Kane, Tanganga, Ndombele, Markanday. Scorers: Dele 10, Vincius 50, 83, Bale 73. Booked: Davies, Alderweireld, Doherty. Manager: Jose Mourinho 8.5. WOLFSBERGER (3-5-2): Kuttin 6.5; Henriksson 6.5, Baumgartner 6 (Giorbelidze 65, 5.5), Lochoshvili 6.5; Novak 5 (Pavelic 45, 6), Stratznig 6 (Rnic 79), Wernitznig 5.5, Liendl 6, Scherzer 6 (Peric 65, 6); Dieng 7, Vizinger 5 (Joveljic 45, 6.5). Subs not used: Rocher, Skubl, Schofl, Taferner, Kofler. Booked: Baumgartner, Wernitznig. Manager: Ferdinand Feldhofer 5. Referee: Matej Jug (Slovenia) 7.