DELE ALLI EXCLUSIVE

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DELE ALLI is ready to bring his A game to the table every week... and not just for the big games, such as today’s north London derby against Arsenal.

That will be music to the ears of Mauricio Pochettino.

The Tottenham manager never likes to see his players getting carried away, something he reiterated in midweek.

So Alli’s t ake on his reputation for starring when the stakes are highest will be just what Pochettino wants to hear. The 22-year-old has an incredible strike rate against the Premier League’s big guns and Europe’s elite.

Pivotal

against Chelsea, two against Manchester City and further strikes against Arsenal, Manchester United and Liverpool.

He also scored twice against Real Madrid, on his England debut and in a World Cup quarter-final.

Dele, an adidas ambassador, reckons facing sides who also play on the front foot, opening up pockets of space for him to operate, could be one reason for his remarkable record.

Pochettino believes Dele is simply a winner who thrives under pressure and gets “bored” when there is not any.

It was certainly a compliment as Pochettino described that as a trait of top players.

Dele added: “To be complimented by the manager is a great feeling.

“Coming up against the big teams you want to impress and show how good you are, play in the big games and test yourself against the best players in the world.

“Everyone in the Premier League has ability but when you come up against the top sides a lot of it is who wants it more, works harder and mentally who is stronger.”

Tottenham’s week of crunch clashes continues with a trip to sworn enemies Arsenal.

Unsurprisingly, it is a biggame fixture Dele has starred in, being named man-of-thematch in his first derby in 2015 which ended 1- 1, just three months into his Premier League career.

He who also scored in a Spurs derby win last year.

Of that first match he said: “I remember the game very well. I would have preferred if we won but to play in your first London derby, when you grow up you see so much about them – they are the games you want to test yourself in and feel the whole atmosphere.

“Watching north London derbies growing up, I just remember seeing tackles flying in and the whole build-up when you see how all the fans are.

“The north London derby, Liverpool v Everton and Manchester City v United are stand- out ones, but being Tottenham obviously I feel like this is the biggest one.

“It means everything to our fans so we have to get the result. In training, you can tell this game is coming up. Everyone is wanting to give their best and it gets a bit heated more than usual.”

Under Pochettino, Spurs have brought an end to Arsenal’s dominance of north London.

Shadow

The Argentinian’s team have lost just one of the last eight of their meetings in the league and have finished above Arsenal in the last two seasons after 22 years in their shadow.

In fact, Spurs have the best London derby record of all the capital’s clubs since Pochettino’s arrival.

Dele said: “We want to feel like we’re the best team in London, and I think our fans believe it as well, so we want to keep working hard, improving and make sure we definitely are.

“Arsenal are in good form and have some top players, but we are in this feeling now at Tottenham when we feel we can beat anyone.

“We’re in good form, playing well and getting the right results and we just need to keep it going.”

INTERVIEW: Adrian Kajumba

Dele wears the adidas Predator 19+ boots, available at https://www.adidas.co.uk/football