According to Liverpool Echo, Everton will consider approaching Tottenham Hotspur to discuss the terms of a Dele Alli deal when the player is about to return to play.
According to Merseyside newspaper (September 23), Alli is seven games away from being able to make a £10 million payment to Spurs, which could be prohibitive due to the financial constraints under which Everton are operating.
Dele spent last season on loan at Besiktas, then underwent hip surgery during the off-season, which made his recovery difficult [Daily Mail, day 9 August], while also revealing some off-field difficulties in an emotional interview with Gary Neville (July 13).
In his press conference on Friday (22 September), Dyche said the club may seek to open discussions with Dele’s former club Tottenham over that deal as part of efforts to help his recovery progress.
He said: “It was a real blow for him. He has dealt with that fantastically well because he had a lot on his plate, he is coming out of that period and getting back on the grass, which is good for him and good for us. But he is still a bit away yet, he is nowhere near training with us yet but he is beginning to work with the sports science people.
“When he is fit and well, I am sure Kev [Kevin Thelwell, director of football], rather than myself, will go to Tottenham and say: ‘Right, how can we make this work for everyone?’ It has never been at that stage, so we have to wait for it to get to that stage.”
Everton future still possible
There is the possibility that Dele becomes a factor in the Everton first team in the near future because of his rehab from injury, and it would be wrong to write him off already.
Dyche’s comments regarding the Spurs talks don’t point towards Everton potentially ending the deal but trying to make it more financially viable given his injury recovery and potential first-team chances.
The way the Toffees negotiated the initial deal back in January 2022 was exceptionally controversial, a deal which could rise to £40 million if certain performance benchmarks are met.
That is a lot of money and right now, those performance benchmarks haven’t been met hence Dyche’s revelation of Everton returning to the negotiating table with Spurs.
It certainly seems as if the former Burnley manager still believes in Alli and as long as he remains manager at Goodison Park, Alli will always have the chance of returning to the first team but that still remains a long way away as he steps up his recovery.
Everton could sorely do with the player they thought they signed back then right now but it remains to be seen whether Alli can reach those levels again and that’s not even guaranteed at a club who are struggling to fire on all cylinders in the Premier League.
The next few months will be intriguing and crucial for all parties involved.
