Pundit demands answers from Frank Lampard as he trashes Everton for signing Dele Alli
Tony Cascarino cannot understand why Everton signed midfielder Dele Alli from Tottenham in January.
Alli, 25, has played six times since moving to Goodison Park but all of those appearances have been as a substitute and in the last two games, he’s been left on Frank Lampard’s bench.
According to The Athletic, the midfielder remains part of Everton’s long-term plans and is still working hard at training.
However, talkSPORT pundit Cascarino has suggested he’s either not performing well at Finch Farm or is carrying a knock.
Either way, he demands answers from manager Frank Lampard.
“I’m mystified by the case of Dele Alli,” Cascarino wrote for The Times. “Why take him from Tottenham Hotspur but then not pick him? Everton had several absences because of injury or suspension for the match against West Ham United at the weekend yet Dele still couldn’t get in the starting line-up and was not even called from the bench as they slipped to defeat.
“If he can’t get in that team then how bad has he been in training? We know he has done very little for Spurs over the past couple of years so you must have a purpose in signing him, a reason for believing it will be different. Is he carrying a knock? Lampard needs to answer these questions.”
Baffling
We’re in the same boat as Cascarino on this one.
Alli has been an unused substitute for Everton’s last two Premier League games and was overlooked by Lampard when Donny van de Beek got injured in the pre-match warm-up against West Ham.
Alex Iwobi, an average wide player, was chosen to play in the middle of the park instead of Alli, an out-and-out midfielder who’s played in a Champions League final and has 37 caps for England.
Lampard signed Alli, he must have done so because he has faith in the former Tottenham midfielder.
However, that faith seems to be dying out and whether that’s on Lampard or the player remains to be seen.
It’s likely to be on Alli, though.
We all saw how good he was when he burst onto the scene with MK Dons and then secured a big move to Tottenham, when he was instrumental in them challenging for the Premier League title and reaching the Champions League final.
Since that defeat to Liverpool, it’s gone very backwards for Alli so you would assume that this continued downfall is on him.
In other Everton news, Richard Keys has mooted a radical plan that would see the Blues’ training base moved to London.
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