Jose Mourinho has admitted that he feels ‘very, very sorry’ for Tottenham Hotspur star Dele Alli.
The Spurs attacker will sit out tonight’s visit of Manchester United in their first game of Project Restart due to a one-match ban.
Last week, it was announced that the Tottenham player had been punished by the Football Association for a social media remark referencing the global health crisis earlier this year.
And although Mourinho feels that the suspension was unfair, the Portuguese coach has called on his eligible players to forget about their team-mate ahead of facing the Red Devils.
He told a press conference via Football London: “Again, I feel very very sorry that he’s not playing. He’s a player that works so so hard during all this period and he’s really frustrated that he cannot play the first match.
“I don’t want to say much more than I don’t think he deserves a one-match ban compared with wrong behaviours at much bigger dimensions. “We’re not going to cry. We’re just going to try to forget that Dele’s not playing.”
To make matters worse, Mourinho could also be without Giovani Lo Celso due to injury.
This really is a must-win game for the Lilywhites, who are four places and seven points behind Chelsea in the race for Champions League qualification.
From here on in, every match is a cup final – pardon the cliche – and that’s the mentality Tottenham need if they’re going to catch their West London rivals.
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