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6 year oldThe technical ability that Alli showed to score his first goal in Tottenham's 3-1 win has always been there, even when things were not coming off for him in front of goal.
People forget how new he is to this level of football - he is still only 21 - and that he set the bar really high and very early by coming into the Premier League, breaking into the Tottenham team and playing so well.
Because he has not been scoring as many goals this season, people have been saying he is struggling, when he is actually having his best campaign in terms of assists and chances created.
That is important because it shows he is still contributing in the final third and is one of the reasons why I have not been worried about his performance levels or jumped on that bandwagon of being negative about him.
Alli is someone who plays with such confidence that he is almost arrogant at times - he likes his nutmegs and his tricks, and they never seem to disappear.
I've watched him a lot and thought that, no matter how good his numbers are in terms of his goals, he never hides. He still gets into dangerous areas.
Dele Alli in all competitions for Tottenham | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Season | Minutes played | Total shots | Mins/shot | Shooting accuracy (excluding blocks) |
2015-16 | 3,224 | 91 | 35 | 58% |
2016-17 | 4,013 | 130 | 31 | 52% |
2017-18 | 3,260 | 89 | 37 | 35% |
He has not let the criticism he has faced affect his self-belief and I always thought the goals would come back if he kept doing the same things.
Although he has missed more chances this season, he does not seem to suffer from a lack of confidence, and that perseverance paid off for him on Sunday.
When it comes to goals, young players' numbers generally go up and down a bit anyway, and usually far more than Alli's have.
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