Unhappy Christmas for Dele Alli? When Everton could give up on ex-Tottenham star after seeing him suffer another injury setback

The Toffees have been allowing the former England international to train with them after seeing his contract at Goodison Park expire. A door was being left open for the 28-year-old midfielder to earn fresh terms on Merseyside and start rebuilding his career.

Dele, though, is nursing another knock – on the back of undergoing more surgery at the start of the year – and is struggling to put himself in a position where Everton can find any use for him. With that in mind, the clock is ticking on efforts to prove his worth.

Former Everton scout Bryan King has told Goodison News of patience potentially running out at a time of the year in which goodwill is supposed to be in plentiful supply: “I think they have shown a lot of loyalty to Alli. He lost his way in football, and it’s a long road for him to come back. I do hope he does get back to playing because he was a very talented player. However, the way he lost his way and his form, I don’t think that will come back easily. It will be a long rehabilitation.

“I think the club are slowly moving on, and they’re looking at both sides of it. If he gets himself fit, okay, but the club can’t bank on him being a player who will win them matches and save them from relegation because he hasn’t played. If there isn’t movement by Christmas, then I think Everton might have to call it a day.”

Dele has taken in just 13 appearances for Everton since first joining them from Spurs in the January transfer window of 2022. His last competitive outing of any kind came in February 2023, during a loan spell at Besiktas, with 20 months being spent out of action since then.