Dele Alli was one of the first Everton players to return for pre-season training

There's good news for once with Dele Alli as he appears to have impressed by being one of the first players at Everton's pre season training.

It has been a tough few years for Alli, who was one of the most exciting prospects in world football when he first joined Tottenham Hotspur's first team from MK Dons.

His time at Spurs basically came to an end under Jose Mourinho after the manager had given him a stark warning about his future as a footballer.

He moved to Everton in January 2022 but other than once rolling back the years to help keep them up, he didn't impress enough to earn a regular place in the team.

The England star was on loan at Besiktas last season and life in Turkey didn't go much better for him than it had been on Merseyside.

He was eventually banished from the first team in Istanbul and they had no interest in making his move permanent beyond the summer.

That has led to a return to Goodison Park under Sean Dyche and the latest opportunity to get his once extremely promising career back on track.

According to the Liverpool Echo, he was one of the first players to arrive for training on Thursday as the Toffees got back into training for pre season.

Whilst it might not seem like a big deal, the 27-year-old has been accused of being lazy in the past and this would suggest he wants to shake that reputation.

Alli hasn't had a good time at Everton so far. Image: Getty

The former MK Dons youngster was told he was 'f***ing lazy in training' by Mourinho during his time at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

However on the player's return from Turkey, Dyche suggested that he was impressed with Alli's attitude, saying: "I just got a sense that he wants to be back playing football and playing well.”

"I’ve heard all the noise, I’ve heard all the opinions and I’m pretty sure that you’re aware that I like to make my own. But he needs to get fit.

"I’ve met him but I haven’t seen him train, I haven’t seen him play for Everton, I haven’t seen him train with us every day."

He may have to really impress in training though because the club will have to pay Spurs £10 million once he play seven more times for the blue side of Liverpool.