Yahoo Finance Dele Alli sits out Tottenham training as PSG loan negotiations intensify
The Tottenham Hotspur attacker Dele Alli has sat out training for the last two days as attempts to negotiate a loan move to Paris St-Germain for the England international, who has played a much-reduced role this season, intensify ahead of the transfer window’s close on Monday.
Alli was not among the substitutes for the FA Cup fourth round tie against Wycombe Wanderers on Monday night and, as things stand, will not be involved against Liverpool in the league on Thursday. The 24-year-old has an offer from PSG to join up again with former Spurs manager Mauricio Pochettino, which he is keen to pursue.
Alli has not trained for the last two days while the details of the loan move are discussed by the relevant parties in the hope that some agreement can be reached. He has not started a game for Spurs since the FA Cup third round tie against eighth tier Marine on Jan 10 and last featured for the team in the Premier League against Liverpool on Dec 16, albeit as a late substitute.
Relations with Jose Mourinho remain cordial, but there is, as yet, no agreement between Spurs and PSG with the deadline approaching at 11pm on Monday. The final decision rests with chairman Daniel Levy who has so far refused to sanction the deal to take Alli to Paris. He is concerned that there is no viable replacement for the player who would be required if the squad suffered a run of injuries or positive Covid-19 tests.
The decision rests with Levy, who agreed a six-year contract with Alli in 2018 and feels that the Englishman is still a key part of Spurs’ future. Mourinho has indicated otherwise this season, last starting Alli in a league game on the first day of the season when he was substituted at half-time in the home defeat to Everton.
There was some consideration given by Spurs to signing a loan deal for Christian Eriksen, who was prepared to return to the club after an unhappy year at Inter Milan, but his new wages at the Italian club were an obstacle to that. There is also a preference at Spurs for any replacement to be homegrown to enable the player in question to take Alli’s place in the Europa League squad.
Clubs in the Europa League must select squads that include eight homegrown players of which four must have been trained at the club in question. For Spurs this season both the non-homegrown Gedson Fernandes and Paulo Gazzaniga have been omitted from the current Europa League squad.
