The most talked-about player at Spurs since Mourinho arrived at the club has been Dele Alli, with many spectators believing that the Portuguese manager has brought the young Englishman back up to the standards he set for himself in his early days at Tottenham.
Alli scored once in Spurs’ victory over Olympiacos in the Champions League and twice against Bournemouth on Saturday. He also netted in Jose’s first defeat at Tottenham against Manchester United on Wednesday night. Perhaps Mourinho hasn’t rejuvenated Alli’s form directly though; rather its been a butterfly effect from a small change that the new manager has made elsewhere on the pitch.
Long-balls have long been associated with Jose Mourinho’s tactical style and Spurs have somewhat embraced this approach in a positive and meaningful way. Defenders and deep midfielders are no longer passing the ball around the back in the hope of making progress up the pitch. Players like Alderweireld have been encouraged to look for a long forward pass to Kane, Son and Alli.
Each of these players have different roles to play when receiving a pass like this. Kane drops deep to win headers and keep possession, while Son darts diagonally into space in the hope of carving through the opposition defence. Alli perhaps has a more ambiguous part to play in Tottenham’s dangerous attacks.
The 23-year-old has free-roam across the attacking midfield areas, making similar darting runs to Son when necessary. However, the coordination between him and Son allows a mental link-up in the attack, where both assess who is in the best position to receive a long ball. Either player tries to localise opposition defenders to create space for the other which is continuing to work out well.
Having said all this, it would be wrong not to mention the individual technical skills that Alli has rediscovered in the last few matches. His second goal against Bournemouth was typical of the goals he has scored earlier in his Tottenham career. Sublime control from a straight ball over the top of the defence has been missing all too often this season. Alli pulled it out the bag once again to shake off two oncoming defenders and chip the ball over the keeper and Mourinho’s appointment could likely end up in a recall to the England senior squad for Tottenham’s young man.
