Dele Alli has come under some serious stick for his performances in recent times as Tottenham Hotspur suffered yet another defeat over the weekend.
Former MK Dons manager Karl Robinson has defended Dele Alli and warned critics to write the Tottenham midfielder off at their peril.
Alli came through the ranks at MK Dons, with Robinson being the man to bring the then-teenager through into the first-team before selling him to Spurs.
Whilst Alli thrived during his early years in North London, he has since stumbled and stagnated, which has resulted in him coming under some serious stick.
Speaking to Sky Sports News (28/10/19 at 12:10 pm), Robinson made a claim about Alli’s character and stated that he is the type of person who will listen to his critics.
“Right him off at your peril in some ways,” Robinson told Sky Sports. “The reason being he is that type of character. He is young. He will make mistakes because that’s what young people do.
“He’s an extremely talented individual. He’s a great man. Somebody that will work hard. Somebody that will listen to the right people. I know some of the things people have been saying about him, he will listen. He wants to be the best he can possibly be.
“That showed because he was the last off the training ground every day. The sports science team were constantly frustrated about the amount of football that he wanted to play. The distances he would cover. He smashed all the records in pre-season. All these little things that get said, only fuel the fire. He will get back to his best and I look forward to watching that.”
Whilst there are players who have expressed a desire to leave Spurs, Alli has not been one of those players and he will be looking to prove his worth to those who doubt him.
Even when Alli was at his best, he would always start off the season in a slow manner, and then pick up, which is something Pochettino will be hoping he does here.
The only difference is that Tottenham are in a bad state and there is no clear sign that for the short to medium term things will get better.
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