George Overhill

Wed 12 October 2022 11:10, UK

Everton loanee Dele Alli will be rated “up with Pele” once he retires based on how highly Paul Scholes is thought of now, says Curtis Woodhouse.

The former professional footballer turned boxer was reacting to an incorrect post on Twitter claiming the midfielder, who is currently on loan at Besiktas, has more Premier League assists than the former Manchester United star.

Commenting on the fact that some players’ reputations seem to grow and grow long past the end of their career he compared the two ex-England players, with the Toffees man perhaps unsurprisingly coming off worse.

Writing on his personal Twitter account on Tuesday (11 October) he wrote in response to the assists claim: “Imagine how good Deli will be in retirement!!!

“Scholes has reached mythical levels since he retired, Deli must be up with Pele surely!!!

“Ones a flop and one could hit a tree from 50 yards! Who would of thought it”.

The stat itself is not even true, as according to the Premier League Scholes finished with 55 assists in the top flight while Dele has 34.

Mess

There was a time when the former Tottenham midfielder looked destined to end his career in the same sort of conversation as Scholes, although probably not one of the players considered the best in history, Pele.

But not since he suffered some injuries and fell out of favour in his final years at Spurs has he looked anywhere close to that.

He’s playing more in the Turkish Super Lig than he was in his time at Goodison, although he missed two games recently through injury, but there aren’t signs yet of a major rejuvenation.

It would be unfair to brand him a “flop” either way, since his career at the top level has outstripped endless other names even allowing for his lack of success with Everton.

For all Woodhouse is laughing about him not being in the same league as Scholes, he is the kind of “streets will never forget” player who could easily pick up a reputation on social media in years to come based on how good he was when winning back to back PFA Young Player of the Year awards in the middle of the previous decade.

Whether he ever returns to Goodison, let alone becomes the factor that Frank Lampard hoped when he hurried through a deal to make the 26-year-old his first permanent signing a day after being announced as Toffees boss, is unclear.

Besiktas have an option to sign him permanently, and Everton are clearly ready to move on, but as with the likes of Andre Gomes it is no foregone conclusion that it will be picked up so he could be back on Merseyside in the summer.