Roy Keane accuses Dele Alli of “losing hunger” for Spurs cause

Roy Keane has accused “non-existent” Dele Alli of losing his passion to fight for the Tottenham Hotspur cause.
The England international failed to create a single key chance as Liverpool came from behind to beat Spurs 2-1 in the Premier League on Sunday.
How has Alli fare this season? Five things to know…
- Alli has started just two Premier League games this season due to a recurring hamstring complication.
- He has netted just twice for club and country in 2019.
- Gareth Southgate dropped him from the England squad in September, and he has failed to return since.
- Alli once again put in a lukewarm performance as Spurs lost to Liverpool on Sunday.
- And Keane has accused the midfielder of ‘losing his hunger’ for the Spurs cause.
Mauricio Pochettino’s men took the lead in the first minute through Harry Kane, but second-half goals from Jordan Henderson and Mohamed Salah painted an all-too familiar story for the Argentine, with the European champions inflicting a sixth defeat for Spurs this season.
Tottenham’s decline since the Champions League final just a few months back has been epic, and Keane singled out Alli’s own individual dip in form.
“He’s lost that hunger, and when you lose that hunger it’s hard to get it back,” the former Manchester United midfielder said on Sky Sports. “Today he was non-existent, and he has been now for a year or two.
“He is a quality player but unless you’ve got the hunger and desire to go in and train properly and try and improve, and all this off-the-field stuff that I see him getting involved in where he thinks he’s a male model of some sort, do me a favour.
“He needs to start looking in the mirror and wondering why he’s lost that hunger and where it’s all gone wrong. Take control of your own career.”
Subscribe to Squawka’s Youtube channel here.
Neville: He’s got to sort himself out
Gary Neville also chimed in on the Alli debate, having worked alongside him during his stint as England assistant manager, believing the misfiring Spurs midfielder hasn’t been himself for a while now.
The ex-Man Utd defender likened Alli to former teammate Keane, but insists that only a shift in mentality will see the 23-year-old hit the heights of his lofty potential.
“Dele Alli, I thought was a young Roy Keane in terms of his mentality when I first started working with him with England,” Neville said.
“[Sunday’s display] is an absolute poor version of Dele Alli. He’s been like that for 12 months and he’s got to sort himself out now because I think a lot of people think a lot of him, and I think a lot of him, but it’s not good enough and he’s got to get his mentality back.
“He needs to hear these words. I think he’s man enough to take it.”