Dele finds his form as Spurs finish strongly
TOTTENHAM caretaker boss Ryan Mason reserved special praise for Dele Alli after his performance in yesterday’s win over Wolves.
Alli has had a difficult season, having been frozen out under previous manager Jose Mourinho and coming close to a move in January.
But Mason, his former team-mate, has restored Alli to the starting line-up and it paid dividends against Wolves as he put in his best performance of the season in front of watching England manager Gareth Southgate.
The 25-year-old was not involved in the goals, scored by Harry Kane and Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg (below) but, even if it did come too late to force his way into the Euro 2020 squad, it was a display of old from the midfielder.
‘I can’t speak in terms of what Gareth is thinking. I don’t know on that but, for me, Dele
was excellent,’ Mason said. ‘I don’t really like singling out players but it’s hard not to because I’m sure everyone felt it.
‘He ran, he competed, he pressed, he created opportunities. I’m sure that he’s disappointed not to get a goal himself. It was an excellent No.10 performance.’
The win strengthened Spurs’ European qualification hopes as a top-six finish – and likely Europa League access – is now in their own hands with two games left.
Mason says that does not change the dynamic going into the Aston Villa match on Wednesday and Sunday’s finale at FA Cup winners Leicester.
‘Our thinking all along was the next game,’ he said. ‘That will be the case. I am going to enjoy the next 30 minutes because our performance deserves that. Our attention has to be on Wednesday. It’s another big game, we know that.
‘[That’s] three wins in four in the Premier League so it is nice to get a good feeling going into a crucial seven days. We needed to see a win first and foremost but also with that, how you win is important.’
Kane boosted his Golden Boot chances with his 22nd goal of the season shortly before half-time, while Hojbjerg’s strike just after the hour killed the game.