“He looks like a young Steven Gerrard” – those were the dreaded words heard in the StadiumMK press seats recently as Dele Alli curled in a great goal for MK Dons. Young players are compared to legends all too often these days, and in this case it is again, but Alli’s traits do resemble those of a young Gerrard.
For an 18-year-old his composure on the ball is what impresses most, nothing seems to faze him. If he receives the ball in the middle of the pitch with two players closing him down, he doesn’t panic, he just turns out of trouble and this is something very rare to see in young players.
His slim, tall figure reminds me of a young Gerrard when he picked up the ball in midfield against Sheffield Wednesday and drove forward. This is something Alli likes to do, by making a bursting run down the middle it creates space for his attackers to run into or he can take a shot himself and it leaves defenders not knowing what to do as his passing and shooting are both very good.
In a game against Bradford City he played a through ball even Philippe Coutinho would have been impressed with. To give you an idea of what his shooting is like without being able to show a video, one of his best came at Sixfields against Coventry City when he hit a looping volley into the net, much like Raul Meireles’ strike against Wolves a couple of years ago. His dribbling is something that often goes unnoticed, but is again very good, thanks to his close ball control he can take on players well on the wing which adds a different threat to his driving runs through the middle.
Of course, this is all at League One level and as of yet he hasn’t had many opportunities to prove himself against better opposition, but he is just 18 and is probably one of, if not the best players in the league. If his performances in league football hadn’t impressed people enough, the way he bossed the midfield against Nick Powell and Anderson in the 4-0 thrashing of Manchester United would have surely made people turn their heads. You can laud Will Grigg and Arsenal’s Benik Afobe for their goals all you like, but Alli controlled that game from midfield and considering Powell is a youngster signed from Crewe Alexandra it gives you an idea of the sort of level he is playing at compared to other young players.
The club is resigned to losing him to a Premier League side at some point, but so far Karl Robinson is doing everything he can to hold on to Alli for as long as he can. They speak regularly and Robinson actually flew out to Luxembourg while Alli was on international duty to speak to him and discuss rumours about him leaving in the Sunday papers. While the club obviously want to get the best fee possible, they also care about the player’s welfare and don’t want him ruining his career by ending up playing youth football, so Brendan Rodgers’ tradition of bringing through young players and his friendship with Robinson should be a positive for Liverpool.
At the beginning of the summer the figures going around were suggesting a potential fee of £4 million plus another £4 million in add-ons. But due to his consistently brilliant start to 2014/15 it is likely any club will have to pay more to secure him in January. It is understood Liverpool had a bid rejected on deadline day, but while Alli is a fan of the club there are many other Premier League sides interested. Chelsea, Newcastle United, Manchester United, Manchester City and Arsenal are all believed to have scouted him, however it was Rodgers and Dave Fallows who made a personal check on Alli in the FA Cup third round tie away at Wigan Athletic in January.
Do Liverpool need him? That’s probably the most important question regarding Alli because the youth academy is currently brimming with talent in midfield. As we haven’t seen the likes of Cameron Brannagan, Jordan Rossiter and Pedro Chirivella play regular football at a senior level it is difficult to compare the players. But Alli is such a talent that the club should really invest in him, loan him back to the Dons or even better a Championship club and hope that he fills his very big potential.
To get a glimpse of what he’s all about I’d advise watching this video uploaded to YouTube by MK Dons after he signed his new contract recently:
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