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Dele Alli at Everton

tiger666

Large Member
Jan 4, 2005
27,978
82,214
He lacks explosive pace. It’s incredibly important in attacking players nowadays and if you aren’t quick you have to be fucking amazing on the ball. He isn’t amazing on the ball.

He lacks the physicality you’d expect from a man his size. He isn’t very quick, or very strong. In fact it often looks like he’s running in treacle. He
is very slow when in possession. His one trick is a nutmeg. That’s basically it.

He has a very limited passing range, particularly long raking passes. He can’t make them. His long range shooting is really really poor. People think he’s a good shooter because of a few goals four years ago. Since then he’s really inaccurate.

He’s at his best when he makes instinctive finishes.

I really don’t see how he fits into a modern attacking system. And he definitely isn’t good enough to play in an elite side. For example who would he get in the team for in either Liverpool or City. He wouldn’t. He doesn’t fit at all.

Nowadays I don’t even know where he fits in at Spurs. He’s regressed into a squad player really.

He gives the ball away so much and he seems tactically stupid. Always tries low percentage fancy flicks which rarely come off instead of being smart and intelligent with the ball.

Maybe he will make a comeback and be brilliant but I just don’t see a player with a well rounded enough game to be top top class. Too many obvious flaws in his game. He’s more like Tim Cahill.

I hope you realise how ridiculous posts like this are now. All it takes is a change in tactics giving him a free role and he's flourishing.
 

Gb160

Well done boys. Good process
Jun 20, 2012
23,646
93,313
I hope you realise how ridiculous posts like this are now. All it takes is a change in tactics giving him a free role and he's flourishing.
Never surprises me how quick people are to post their 'insights' which very often come back to bite them...that one is a beauty though.
 

Marty

Audere est farce
Mar 10, 2005
39,885
62,554
A player reborn judged on the first three games.

The way Mourinho describes how he wants his number 10 to play is perfect for Dele. A 9,5 in attack, 8,5 in defence. It's a very demanding role but absolutely perfect for Dele's skillset.

He'll be back in the England XI for the Euros at this rate, no problem.
 

Primativ

Well-Known Member
Aug 9, 2017
3,229
12,486
I hope you realise how ridiculous posts like this are now. All it takes is a change in tactics giving him a free role and he's flourishing.

He’s like a player reborn but early days.

My points still stand though. Even today he made a mess of some simple shots and passes. All his best stuff is instinctive, off the ball movement flicks and tricks. He was very very good today but he’s still has glaring weaknesses like his long shooting and and passing game.

Jose is playing to his strengths though and that’s great. I’m not complaining if Alli plays like today every week.
 

Joely

Well-Known Member
Jan 20, 2011
1,724
4,648
Just looks a player who is now being allowed to play to his strengths and has been freed up to focus on doing the things he is good at. Way he ghosts into dangerous positions and takes on the long pass is brilliant. Excellent finish for the second to.
 

walworthyid

David Ginola
Oct 25, 2004
7,059
10,242
He’s like a player reborn but early days.

My points still stand though. Even today he made a mess of some simple shots and passes. All his best stuff is instinctive, off the ball movement flicks and tricks. He was very very good today but he’s still has glaring weaknesses like his long shooting and and passing game.

Jose is playing to his strengths though and that’s great. I’m not complaining if Alli plays like today every week.
Just look at his record compared to the best goalscoring midfielders in the prem era. He is up there with the best. Yes he is a very instinctive player and yes not everything he does comes off, but it doesn't have to! He only needs to get it right, in the right areas, a couple of times per game. He is a match winner. When the pressure is really on, he steps up and makes things happen.

He may not be a conventional type of player but he has that rarest of things, the ability to score and create goals at the very highest level, loads of them!

Seeing him like this reminds you what we have been missing.
 

SE Spurs

Well-Known Member
Aug 12, 2018
2,669
4,760
Great to see him scoring again. Best goal scoring midfielder in the country imo, its what he does best.
 

Timberwolf

Well-Known Member
Jan 17, 2008
10,328
50,217
I was crying out for Poch to push him back up top with Kane for years. Once it became clear the Dele as a no.8 experiment wasn't working, it made so much sense to play him where he was a teenage goalscoring sensation.

I wouldn't be surprised if Jose is actually showing Dele videos of his early goals as both goals, but particularly the second, were so typical of Dele in his early days. A pinpoint long pass from Toby combined with an excellent run behind and some close control. He's masterful at it. Watch his 3rd, 5th, 9th and 30th in this compilation to see the similarity (no. 43 is probably the most recent example).

 

nattydredd

Non Contributor
Jul 20, 2015
1,103
4,412
It's amazing what being told you're a great player, then having a manager who knows his best position is, can do to a players confidence, form and performance levels.
 

walworthyid

David Ginola
Oct 25, 2004
7,059
10,242
It's amazing what being told you're a great player, then having a manager who knows his best position is, can do to a players confidence, form and performance levels.
Its partly that obviously, but I think it's no coincidence that he is playing in his natural position and more importantly we are getting the ball forward quickly again. Both goals came from long balls which bypassed the midfield. He is an instinctive player, he knows when to run and where to run to, playing slowly through midfield takes away his best qualities.
 

BringBack_leGin

Well-Known Member
Jul 28, 2004
27,719
54,929
Two lovely goals, key pass for the third, should’ve had a hatrick and a performance filled with tricks and flair. And my oh my, that long range slide rule pass to Son with the outside of his boot ?
 

double0

Well-Known Member
Aug 29, 2006
14,423
12,258
Dele Alli. It was a matter of time before we started to see what Dele is capable of, we know his ceiling is high. The problem was, he had pretty serious hamstring injuries and was IMO burnt out from the amount of football he played leading up to the world cup and last season before he suffered the first injury.

Another unfair observation I noticed with Dele was/ if he's not scoring people judged him very harshly- He is scoring again now so people are talking about him again it's a bit catch 22.
 
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BringBack_leGin

Well-Known Member
Jul 28, 2004
27,719
54,929
Dele Alli. It was not a matter of time before we started to see what Dele is capable of, we know his ceiling is high. The problem was, he had pretty serious hamstring injuries and was IMO burnt out from the amount of football he played leading up to the world cup and last season before he suffered the first injury.

Another unfair observation i noticed with Dele was/ if he's not scoring people judged him very harshly- He is scoring again now so people are talking about him again it's a bit catch 22.
I don’t think it’s the goals (welcome though they are), I think it’s the dribbling, the vision, the off the cuff passes which seem to defy physics. He’s playing with real flair and style right now and we’ve not seen it in a good while, and I say that as someone who usually found good in his performances in the past year.
 

dk-yid

Well-Known Member
Jan 17, 2011
4,489
8,020
I was crying out for Poch to push him back up top with Kane for years. Once it became clear the Dele as a no.8 experiment wasn't working, it made so much sense to play him where he was a teenage goalscoring sensation.

I wouldn't be surprised if Jose is actually showing Dele videos of his early goals as both goals, but particularly the second, were so typical of Dele in his early days. A pinpoint long pass from Toby combined with an excellent run behind and some close control. He's masterful at it. Watch his 3rd, 5th, 9th and 30th in this compilation to see the similarity (no. 43 is probably the most recent example).



Funny seeing his 1st and 50th are almost identical.

Also, the amount of times he scores from balls being crossed/passed from right to left.... That's definitely where he excels. Crosses to the back post, the long diagonal and the cut back from the right....
 

Montalbano

Well-Known Member
Jan 29, 2018
3,917
18,685
There's no coincidence that we're getting results as he's flying again. He's a phenomenal player and he's Spurs through and through, got to love the guy.
 

Japhet

Well-Known Member
Aug 30, 2010
19,232
57,389
He's linking up beautifully with Toby at the moment. He was so limited by our slow build up play under Poch. He's also looking fit for the first time in months.
 
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