Dele Alli pictured surrounded by gas canisters with a balloon in his mouth after UK return

Dele Alli has been pictured with a balloon in his mouth while appearing to be surrounded by canisters of laughing gas.

The 26-year-old returned to the UK for an assessment on a hip injury last week, seemingly curtailing his season long loan at Besiktas. Despite hopes that heading to the Turkish Super Lig would revitalise him, the midfielder has made just 15 appearances in all competitions.

And just days after returning to these shores , the former England midfielder has been snapped sitting around a table with friends. Bottles of nitrous oxide, often dubbed as 'hippy crack', were visible along with bottles of alcohol and chewing tobacco.

Other fizzy drinks and bottles of water were also apparent, alongside a pack of playing cards.

His return to the UK follows a bizarre saga last month, when Besiktas manager Senol Gunes claimed that Alli had not turned up for training and couldn't be contacted, only for the player himself to take to social media and deny going AWOL.

It has been a rocky period for Alli, whose displays in the 2018 World Cup in Russia saw him touted to become a mainstay of the England side for years to come. But after falling out of favour at Tottenham, a move to Everton last January failed to reignite his form.

And amid an ineffective start in Besiktas, earlier this season Gunes offered a scathing assessment on his form : "Dele Alli has had a good career," he said. "But he doesn't deserve to play at the moment. The current situation has not met our expectations as a team."

It's been a difficult season for Dele Alli (Getty)

Alli still has a year remaining on his Everton contract, but new boss Sean Dyche is expected to make a decision on his future in the summer.

Only last weekend, Cardiff City striker Connor Wickham angered the club's fans when he was pictured inhaling from a balloon just hours after his side were beaten by Swansea in the South Wales derby. Wickham later issued a public apology.

While possession of laughing gas is not illegal, Home Secretary Suella Braverman wants to introduce new laws banning it, claiming links with anti-social behaviour.