EVERY genius has their flaws. If there is a blemish in the otherwise impeccable make-up of Dele Alli, the coming man of English football, then it centres on his suspect temperament. Tottenham Hotspur’s creative fulcrum has constructed a reputation over the last few years as an attacking force of pace, guile and strength but there have also been days when the red mist has descended and a red card has sometimes followed.
Alli will miss the first three matches of Spurs’ Champions League campaign next season after being sent off for an eye-watering, over-the-ball challenge on Gent’s Brecht Dejaegere in a Europe League tie in February, the same length of domestic punishment he received for punching West Bromwich Albion’s Claudio Yakub in the stomach, reportedly under provocation, a year ago.
Capitalising on this apparent defect might be something that has traversed the mind of Scotland manager Gordon Strachan as he looks to come up with a viable way of halting an England side brimming with confidence and intent on plundering Hampden and stealing away with a World Cup qualifying victory.
Strachan likes to paint himself as a man of integrity, not someone likely to indulge too heavily in the dark arts, but it would be interesting to see Alli’s reaction were the likes of Russell Martin or Scott Brown to test his fortitude early in the match with a crunching tackle or some other form of Machiavellian mischief.
The 21 year-old, who has scored 23 goals for club and country this season, is aware that England can expect a cacophony of noise and intimidation when they walk out the Hampden tunnel shortly before 5pm but is confident in his ability to keep his temper in check, even if he warned that he wouldn’t “let players walk all over me”.
“I’m very sure I can handle this occasion and atmosphere at Hampden,” he said. “As a player, these are kind of games you dream about playing in. I will be looking to do the best I can for my country against Scotland. But it’s important that you stand your ground. I won’t let players walk all over me. There are a lot of mixed opinions about my disciplinary record but that’s the way I play the game. I’ve been like that since I was young and I’m not looking to change that.
“My under-13 manager used to take me off if I was losing my temper. I have made a few mistakes and I have learned from them. But it’s not something I am worried about. Maybe if I didn’t have it in my game, I wouldn’t have come as far. You have to make mistakes to learn from them.I was disappointed with the West Brom one and there was the red card in the Europa League. That was a bad tackle and I apologised for that straight away. I would never go out to hurt someone. It was a poor tackle and it was a horrible thing to look back at.”
Admittedly, these occasional flashes of rage do not detract from the fact that Alli is undoubtedly blossoming into one of the most talented players of his generation. He did not take the traditional route to success either. Rather than being ensconced inside a cosseted Premier League academy for a decade or so, Alli emerged instead at his local club MK Dons, spending time in the rough and tumble of League One before signing for Spurs in 2015.
Strachan has revealed himself to be an admirer of a player he described recently as an all-round number 10, someone whose talent is matched only by his work rate. Less than two years after making his international debut, Alli has become an integral part of Gareth Southgate’s side.
“When it was all going so quickly, I was taking moments out to think about it – but then I also thought about how hard I’d worked,” he admitted. “I probably didn’t expect it to happen so early but you can’t wait for time. You need to go with it and I’m thankful for everything that’s happened. I’m just being myself. I enjoy each challenge as it comes.”
Comparisons with other English attacking midfielders have not been slow in arriving but Alli modestly admits he is not there yet.
“The main England player I looked up to was Steven Gerrard. It was mainly for his talent, his hunger and all the great goals he scored for club and country. I have seen the stuff about my stats compared to his and it’s nice – but I have a lot to achieve before I am as good as him and Frank Lampard. It’s an honour to be put in the same category but I don’t let it get too my head. I am nowhere near complete. I still need to work on a lot and I want to score more goals.” Scotland will do well to keep him quiet this afternoon.
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