‘I blame myself – working with Mourinho was GREAT’: Dele Alli breaks his silence on his Tottenham exile under his former manager but refuses to criticise him, as he sets his sights on a fresh start under new boss Nuno Espirito Santo
- Dele Alli was mainly used in cup competitions by Jose Mourinho last season
- Despite finding things tough, Alli said that he learned a lot from his old manager
- Now, the 25-year-old is looking to make the most of a fresh start in 2021-22
Dele Alli insists he holds no hard feelings towards Jose Mourinho despite his time in the wilderness at Tottenham under the club’s former manager.
Alli found himself in exile from the first team set-up under Mourinho for long spells, with many of his appearances only coming in the FA Cup and Europa League.
Mourinho was frustrated by Alli’s application in training in the early days of his Tottenham tenure – as documented in the behind-the-scenes Amazon show All or Nothing – but the 25-year-old holds no grudges against his ex-manager.
Dele Alli says he ‘learned a lot’ by working under former manager Jose Mourinho at Tottenham
The 25-year-old found it tough to keep a place in Tottenham’s starting line-up with Mourinho
‘The only person I blame is myself,’ he said to Goal. ‘I should be performing at a level where it is difficult to not put me in the team or not play me.
‘I don’t blame anyone but myself. Working with Mourinho was a great experience and one I learned a lot from.’
Mourinho admitted in an interview in Spain recently that former players of his may consider him ‘a b*****d’ because of his direct nature but it seems the Tottenham attacker isn’t one of them, despite widespread reports of bad blood between them at Spurs.
Mourinho was sacked by Tottenham in April and now there is a chance for a fresh start for Alli under Nuno Espirito Santo, the former Wolves boss who took over at the London club last week.
Just two days ago, Alli shared pictures of himself training alone at a venue called ‘The Campus’ in Portugal and he is relishing the upcoming campaign.
‘He (Nuno) has done a great job at Wolves,’ Alli said. ‘I am looking forward to speaking to him and working with him. He is a great manager and it is exciting times.
‘I want to make this year one of the best I have had. A lot of people have said I need to find the form I was in a few years ago. For me, I don’t even want to get to that, I want to go past that and reach my full potential to be the best player I can be.’
Alli has been training in Portugal to get in the best shape possible before the new season
Tottenham recently appointed Nuno Espirito Santo as Mourinho’s successor as manager
Perhaps a marker of Alli’s fall in form is his absence in the England fold. Three years ago, he played and scored in England’s World Cup quarter-final win over Sweden but now is not even in the set-up.
Tottenham’s season begins on August 15 when they host Premier League champions Manchester City. The following week they are away to Wolves, Santo’s old club.
Their first pre-season friendly is on August 17 against Leyton Orient.