Rio Ferdinand comments on Dele Alli’s impossible task for Tottenham

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Tottenham Hotspur just about managed to overcome the challenge of PSV last night, with Mauricio Pochettino’s side keeping their hopes alive.

Rio Ferdinand has told BT Sport that Tottenham Hotspur’s Dele Alli was given an impossible task by Mauricio Pochettino against PSV Eindhoven last night.

Alli was tasked with marking Luuk De Jong from set pieces, and the Dutch side quickly exploited the weakness in Tottenham’s defensive system.

De Jong headed home from a corner to give PSV the lead at Wembley, and Ferdinand didn’t understand why Alli was marking the target-man.

The former Manchester United defender said: “De Jong is their best header of the ball and you’ve got Alli marking him. I don’t understand that. He’s too tight. His upper body strength isn’t enough to deal with De Jong. It’s nearly impossible for him.”

Tottenham simply had to win against PSV last night, so going behind was the last thing they needed.

Spurs were forced to stay patient, as Harry Kane scored a late brace to rescue them.

Kane first slotted home with his left-foot, before a deflected header crawled over the line in the final minute to ensure that Tottenham picked up a vital three points.

Spurs still need to beat Inter Milan and Barcelona to get out of their group, but their hopes are still alive now.

Tottenham are next in action at the weekend, when they take on Crystal Palace on Saturday evening.