Tottenham Hotspur

Dele Alli: 'Mauricio Pochettino has controlled my temper'

By Daniel Lewis, Senior Reporter | 20 March 2017

Dele Alli insists that he will never apologise for his at times fiery temperament, but is hopeful of curbing his anger thanks to support from Mauricio Pochettino.

Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Dele Alli has credited Mauricio Pochettino with helping him to learn from his mistakes, but insists that he will never fully lose his fiery edge.

The England international has built a reputation for having a hot-headed nature, not helped by a straight red shown to him in the recent Europa League meeting with Gent for a dangerous studs-up challenge.

Alli has once again impressed in front of goal this term by contributing to 17 goals in the Lilywhites' title push, however, and he claims that he is now learning from his "mistakes" after holding talks with boss Pochettino earlier in the season.

"I have so many things to learn from this season," he is quoted as saying by The Express. "Everyone makes mistakes and it's important that you bounce back. I felt horrible straight after it but it's important I put it behind me and make sure I learn from it and keep improving.

"Thankfully, Mauricio Pochettino knows that's who I am. We've had a few talks and he's been really supportive. It's good to have a manager behind me who trusts and supports me as much as he does. I have calmed down a bit but I'm never going to take that out of my game.

"I'm never gonna say sorry for wanting to win or trying as hard as I can. Sometimes things happen and you have to learn from them. I'm still young, I'm 20 years old. There's going to be a lot of ups and downs in football, that's the way it is. It's important if things don't go my way and things happen, that I learn from them and keep improving."

Alli's penalty in the 2-1 win over Southampton on Sunday afternoon took his overall Premier League goals tally to 24 in 60 games.