Dele Alli breaks silence on Besiktas manager comments that 'he didn't deserve to play'
Dele Alli admitted that he's fallen short of expectations since his loan move to Besiktas, but the former Tottenham Hotspur star believes he's now back on the right track.
Dele returned to form on Friday night with a Man Of The Match display in Besiktas' 3-0 win over Alanyaspor, which he capped with a goal – before doing a 'shushing' celebration.
The 26-year-old had previously struggled with the Turkish club – he's on loan for the season from Everton – and was criticised by his new boss Senol Gunes.
The manager, who replaced Valerian Ismael as Besiktas boss in October, pinpointed Dele as an underperforming player.
Dele Alli has scored for Besiktas!
— Matchday365 (@Matchday365) January 27, 2023
It's his 2nd non-penalty league goal since January 2020. pic.twitter.com/zbNskgRMHE
But Dele responded in fine style on Friday and was then asked about the comments after the match.
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He said: "I'm happy to score a goal and get three points. We showed a strong performance in front of our fans.
"I may not have been able to deliver what was expected until now, but this match was an opportunity.
"I will try to contribute to the team as much as I can."
After his appointment earlier in the campaign, Gunes said: "Dele Alli has had a good career. But he doesn't deserve to play at the moment. The current situation has not met our expectations as a team.
"We expect him to contribute to the team, but we think he cannot contribute at the moment. We will evaluate it with him and the club. We prepared for the matches with the players here."
Dele now has two goals in 10 appearances for Besiktas and will need to improve his consistency if he's to get back to the kind of levels he showed as a Tottenham Hotspur player under Mauricio Pochettino.
Only Phil Foden, Wayne Rooney, Robbie Fowler and Ryan Giggs have matched Dele's achievement of winning two PFA Young Player of the Year awards in their careers – esteemed company for the ex MK Dons youngster, who has lost his way since Pochettino left Spurs.
Read more: Dele Alli's MOTM display to silence critics for Besiktas
Topics: Dele Alli, Besiktas, Turkish Super Lig
Dominic Booth