Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino: Dele Alli showed he can improve his behaviour in Palace match

Showing maturity: Pochettino was impressed with the way Alli reacted to Fiorentina controversy
ANDREAS SOLARO/AFP/Getty Images
Tom Collomosse24 February 2016

Mauricio Pochettino has spoken to Dele Alli about his behaviour on the pitch after his clash with Fiorentina defender Nenad Tomovic last week.

Tomovic was furious with Alli last week, believing the Tottenham midfielder had deliberately kicked him off the ball.

Alli told Standard Sport that he had not intended to do so and that Tomovic had accepted his apology, but Spurs head coach Pochettino still saw fit to discuss the matter with the 19-year-old.

Pochettino said: “We had a very good chat, and I think it was important. He is very young and needs to learn, but he is a very nice guy. He is very competitive on the pitch and has shown he is one of the best players in England.

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“But at the same time he is young and needs to learn. He showed very good maturity against Crystal Palace (in Tottenham’s 1-0 defeat last Sunday), he played well and he showed that he can learn and improve his behaviour on the pitch. It was a normal chat and it showed for the future that he has learned a lot.”

Alli could be asked to play a key role again in the return leg against Fiorentina tomorrow, with Harry Kane (broken nose) and Mousa Dembele (groin) unavailable.

Spurs know that a 0-0 draw will be enough to send them into the last 16 of the Europa League after Nacer Chadli’s penalty earned a 1-1 draw in Florence last week.

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