Frank Lampard has revealed the real reasons behind the dramatic collapse of Dele Alli’s career.
Five years ago, the supremely talented midfielder had become the first player since Wayne Rooney to win two consecutive PFA Young Player of the Year awards, and scored in a World Cup quarter-final four years ago.
But at just 26, he has left Everton after just seven months on Merseyside, following a move from Spurs as the club where he made his name effectively let one of the best talents of his generation go for nothing.
Now, the decline has taken him to Istanbul and Besiktas, a move that even he seemed bemused about, as his emotions - written on his face - betrayed when he arrived in the Turkish city to a late night welcome from fans.
And Lampard pulled no punches as he spoke candidly about the issues which Dele brought with him to Goodison - and which will kill his career unless he swiftly addresses them.
“Look, I do have great empathy for the trajectory of his career in a sense, because it is just clear to see - I don’t have to dress that up in any way,” Lampard, once a world class midfielder himself, said.
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“So, having worked closely with him for a period, I have to say he really does need to understand the relation of training and focus at the highest level, to what that means to performance. I actually know on a personal level what training can do and focus can do, and that’s something he really has to take on board.”
Three years ago, a revealing fly-on-the-wall documentary at Spurs showed Jose Mourinho having a heart-to-heart with Dele, and saying bluntly to the midfielder: “Time flies, and you will regret if you don’t reach what you can reach.”
It seems the penny hasn’t dropped. Lampard was asked about that, and he paused, before speaking a painful truth to the former England star, as he reaches the crossroads where he could save his career, or disappear from football completely.
“He’s at that point. That is the test for him now,” he said, with genuine regret in his voice. “That is my personal opinion. And I’m not saying anything there that I wouldn’t say to any player.
“He has to do it - every player has to do it. It is too elite, this sport is too elite at the top end. The focus has to be there and if you don’t have it (at this level) it is really really tough - and those are the rules.”
Alli drifted at Spurs under managers whose approach didn’t suit his style, but it seems that affected his mentality, and his commitment to football and his career.
It was telling that Lampard, who brought him to Goodison to try and get the best out of a genuine talent, gave him only one start - and that in the final game of last season when Everton were safe from relegation.
There was a tiny flash of his quality in a second half performance as a sub against Palace, but that apart, most of the stories on Alli from the Blues’ training ground, were tales of a lack of focus, commitment and intensity in his work.
Lampard clearly confirmed that, and he spoke a brutal truth to Dele, even as he sanctioned a move that effectively sees him depart from the heights of English football, even though the best part of his career should be ahead.
These days, he said, with football now so elite, there can be no hiding, no cheating. “If you want to be in that (elite) bracket, or to be influential at a club like Everton, or Tottenham where he was before, or anywhere, then you have to understand that relationship between focus (and dedication), and performance.
“It is just too elite. Every player has to have a version of what is best for them and what gets the most out of them. I wasn’t a Saint, and not every player will do the amount of training that a certain player does, but that focus HAS to be there.”
