Ryan Mason has admitted to BBC Sport that Dele Alli was ‘disappointed’ in the dressing room at full time, despite Tottenham Hotspur’s 2-0 win over Wolves.
Alli played excellently as Tottenham picked up a mood enhancing three points at their home stadium.
The attacking midfielder seems to be enjoying his football again, after a run of starts since Mason took charge.
However, he failed to convert a very presentable opportunity to finally get his name on the scoresheet again.
After Harry Kane’s shot in the post, the ball fell to Alli, but he could only hit the woodwork on the rebound from close range.
And Mason admits that Alli was upset in the dressing room, despite his brilliant display.
“Professional,” the Tottenham boss said, when asked to describe Alli’s performance.
“It’s not easy for professional footballers to spend a lot of time on the sidelines, but you’ve seen Dele start the last three games and to do that says a lot about him as a character and the way he lives his life.
“He loves football, you can see that, he runs and helps the team. He fights.
“He’s sitting in there disappointed that he didn’t get a goal because I felt his performance deserved a goal, but he was outstanding.”
Mason’s comments show just how high the standards Alli sets for himself are.
It is also understandable why Alli was so disappointing not to get on the scoresheet.
It has been over a year now since Alli last hit the back of the net in the Premier League, which is an alarming stat for a player of his talents.
The Tottenham midfielder is showing exactly why Jose Mourinho should have trusted him more though, with his creativity coming to the fore since his reintroduction to Spurs’ side lately.
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