How far away Dele Alli’s 2016-2017 season seems… The time when the young attacking midfielder delighted the Premier League with his brilliant inspirations, and when his duet with Harry Kane shook opposing defenses. Despite the calinotherapy of Pochettino, almost paternal remonstrances from José Mourinho, and a loan to Everton to relieve the pressure, Dele Alli only dug even deeper. To the point that his last loan to Besiktas ended with a crash and unfriendly statements from the president of the Turkish club.
The descent into hell of Dele Alli therefore logically made the headlines of the English press. Without ever having the player’s version. Who finally confided in the show TheOverlapto Gary Neville, the consultant of Sky Sports and former captain of Manchester United. He confessed to an addiction to sleeping pills and to having already been to rehab. “When I came to Turkey, I found out that I needed an operation. I was mentally in bad shape. I decided to go to a modern rehabilitation center for mental health, addiction and trauma. »
“I felt it was time for me. With things like that, you can’t be told to go. I made the decision to go there. I was caught in a bad cycle, I relied on things that hurt me. I was waking up every day and winning the fight, training, smiling, showing I was happy but inside I was definitely losing the battle and it was definitely time to change that”he continued.
Planned end of career
Close to tears, Dele Alli continued his confession, saying that he had been close to retiring. “I literally looked at myself in the mirror and wondered if I could retire now, at 24… for me, it was heartbreaking. I have always led a fight against myself. I was smiling, showing that I was happy but inside I was really losing the fight. If you know my life, you will understand a little more. I want to help other people in this situation, they are not alone and it does not make you weak to ask for help. »
He now feels better since leaving treatment. “But I never could have imagined how much I would get out of it and how much it helped me mentally because I was in a bad place. I came out three weeks ago. If I’m being honest, I probably wouldn’t have wanted to talk about it so soon, but I’m in a really good position to talk about it now.”. Still under contract with Everton, will Dele Alli return to the field? In any case, he thanks the Toffees for having accompanied him in his process. “Everton have been amazing about it, they’ve always been 100 per cent behind me and I’ll be forever grateful for that. »
