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Tottenham Hotspur are gambling that Dele Alli will improve his form enough to raise his market value before selling him next summer, according to a report.

Alli has suffered a fall from grace in recent years after once being a bright talent and England regular. He only started seven Premier League games last season and failed to score in any domestic competition. His gametime is improving this term but he still looks a shadow of his former self.

The 25-year-old has started all six of Tottenham’s Premier League games so far, but like his club as a whole, his form has been mixed. He was one of three players we picked out as needing to be dropped after Spurs’ loss to Crystal Palace earlier this month. Instead, he has kept his place in the team, but came in for renewed criticism after his performance in the north London derby at the weekend.

Alli was withdrawn at half-time of that defeat and faces a battle to convince Nuno Espirito Santo of his role in the team, despite starting every league game under him so far.

The midfielder remains under contract until 2024, but the prospect of a premature exit has lingered for a while. There were rumours of him reuniting with Mauricio Pochettino at Paris Saint-Germain in January, but the French giants did not want to pay the loan fee Spurs were requesting.

Now, Tottenham face a battle to fetch the kind of price they want to sell Alli. Even after his downturn, they have definitely got their money’s worth from their initial £5.97m investment in 2015. But exactly how much they can receive for him now is unclear.

Daniel Levy does not like to let players go on the cheap and he will be keen to get a decent price for Alli. With that in mind, Tottenham have an exit plan for the former MK Dons man – according to Football Insider.

The online outlet claims Tottenham are not expecting to sell Alli in January due to his deteriorating value. Instead, their plan is to wait until next summer in the hope he may have regained some form – and value – by then.

They would have been willing to sell him this summer, but financially it wasn’t worth it. If he can build up any kind of form between now and the summer of 2022, that may change.

There is a feeling behind the scenes that Alli is an inconsistent trainer, which is not helping. The hope is merely that he can show some positive signs on the pitch to convince someone to pay a price all parties deem fair for him.

The report does not claim to know any of his potential suitors. After all, a lot could change between now and the time they plan to sell him.

Alli given advice

After his humbling substitution against Arsenal, Alli was given some advice on how to get back on track.

Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville, who was coaching in the England setup when Alli broke through, reminded him that all is not lost.

“He’s got to simplify his game,” Neville said on Sky Sports. “He was an instinctive player that realised his job was to get in the box in every attack.

Nuno Espirito Santo in perilous position after Tottenham derby thumping by Arsenal

“He needs to get into the box, make that run from a deeper position. Dele must run off from Harry Kane or past him when they don’t have the ball.

“He’s now basically getting involved in build-up, thinking he’s a player and he’s not a player [like that]. He’s not a Thiago or Bruno Fernandes or Jorginho. Dele is not that type of player, don’t get too involved in the build-up.

“He’s got to remove himself from the build-up. Dele needs to get involved in the game in the latter part and final third, then get back and tackle.”

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