This article is part of Football FanCast’s Pundit View series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent quotes from journalists, pundits, players and managers…
Paul Merson believes Dele Alli has stopped trusting his Tottenham Hotspur team-mates, per Sky Sports.
What’s he said?
The England international has endured a difficult season thus far, scoring just once in his seven appearances in all competitions.
Alli struggled again on Sunday as Spurs lost 2-1 to Liverpool at Anfield, having just one shot on goal, completing one dribble and losing the ball on three separate occasions.
And Merson believes that the 23-year-old’s issues stem from a distrust of the players around him.
He said: “I’ve said it for a long time, Dele Alli has to get back to the old Dele Alli and he was one of the best young attacking midfield prospects in Europe. He got in the box, made runs and he could score a goal. He was probably the nearest thing to Frank Lampard at one stage.
“If you’re a midfielder, no one likes chasing another midfielder when they haven’t got the ball and they get in the box and score a goal. That’s what he’s stopped doing. He might be thinking that when Moussa Sissoko has got the ball, is it worth me running? And that’s a problem.
“I like Harry Winks but he’s not a 40-yard passer of the ball. The only one who is going to put it on a sixpence for you in the Tottenham team is Christian Eriksen and if you look back on Alli’s goals over the last few years, some of his goals have been from 40-yard passes and I think he’s lost confidence in the players on the ball.
“It’s horrible because he starts thinking ‘I’m not going to run here because I’m not going to be found’ so you don’t run and you’re the one who gets the blame and I think that’s the problem he’s got at the moment.”
A change in Alli’s role?
Merson is not considering the prospect of Alli’s position being changed.
The midfielder, of course, scored 18 goals in 37 Premier League appearances in 2016/17. Per WhoScored, in that season, he had 2.5 shots per game on average, 1.4 key passes, 1.4 dribbles and was fouled on 2.1 occasions. Defensively, he made 1.4 tackles per game, 0.3 interceptions and conceded 1.4 fouls.
This season, offensively, Alli has had one shot per game, made 0.7 key passes, 1.3 dribbles and is fouled on 0.7 occasions. In defence, he has made 1.7 tackles, one interception and conceded just 0.3 fouls.
That speaks to a more disciplined midfielder who is, in contradiction to Merson’s quotes, actually trying to help his team-mates wherever possible.
It is, of course, feasible to believe that Mauricio Pochettino may have told Alli not to get forward as he looks to add some solidity to the centre of the pitch, having essentially given him a free role three seasons ago.
Alli has aged in that time and is now 23; he is adding discipline to his game and that should be applauded.
