Dele Alli said he decided to leave Tottenham Hotspur for Everton because he wanted to be happy playing football again.
The 25-year-old English attacking midfielder joined Everton on the January transfer window deadline day for a transfer fee worth £40 million.
He signed a three-and-a-half-year deal that would keep him at Everton until June 30, 2024. He left Tottenham Hotspur after struggling for two straight seasons to regain relevance at the club.
Unfortunately for Dele Alli, he could not impress coach Jose Mourinho, coach Nuno, and coach Antonio Conte at Tottenham Hotspur which left him with no choice but to try another club.
Fortunately for him, coach Frank Lampard who just joined Everton on January 31, picked interest in him and they were able to seal the transfer deal before the winter transfer window closes.
After he sealed the deal, Dele Alli told Sky Sports that he has always been an admirer of Frank Lampard’s football career who played the best part of his career at Chelsea before he briefly played for Manchester City.
👋 @dele_official pic.twitter.com/3Zxj20O4BU
— Everton (@Everton) February 1, 2022
The 25-year-old attacking midfielder stressed that he is excited to play under coach Lampard, adding that he and the former Chelsea coach would do great things at Goodison Park.
“I’m very excited, a bit tired from the long day but we got there in the end. I’m delighted,” Alli said.
“I’ve had a few good conversations with him [Lampard] already, he’s a player I admired through his whole career watching him. I’m pleased to work with him, it’s very exciting, I’m sure we can do great things together.
“I just want to be happy playing football. Working with Lampard, and the great players Everton has got is a great opportunity for me to do that. I’m excited to go there, show the fans what I can do, and help the club as much as I can.”
Dele Alli is a product of Milton Keynes Dons Football club’s youth system. He played for Tottenham Hotspur between 2015 and 2022. Before he left Spurs this winter, the out of favor England international scored 67 goals and provided 61 assists in 269 games in all competitions.
After bringing Dele Alli and Van de Beek to Everton, coach Frank Lampard intends to bring in Ashley Cole
Immediately Everton confirmed Frank Lampard as the coach of the club, the English tactician ensured that the club signed Dele Alli from Tottenham Hotspur on a permanent deal and signed Van de Beek on loan from Manchester United.
His next plan is to make Ashley Cole, his former teammate at Chelsea who is currently working with Chelsea’s academy and England’s U21 squad, a part of his backroom staff at Everton.
Lampard’s backroom staff already comprised of Joe Edwards from Chelsea (assistant manager), former Derby, Reading, and Swansea manager Paul Clement (first-team coach), and Chris Jones, who was part of his set-up at Derby. Everton’s former caretaker manager Duncan Ferguson and goalkeeper coach Alan Kelly are also part of his backroom staff.
Frank Lampard: The Story So Far… 🔵 pic.twitter.com/vyGLppZTdm
— Everton (@Everton) February 1, 2022
All things being equal, Ashley Cole is expected to join Lampard at Everton a few days from the time of publishing this report.
Frank Lampard and his backroom team.✊🔵 pic.twitter.com/qKg6iwD3F7
— Everton (@Everton) February 1, 2022