Dele Alli deal in jeopardy?! Tottenham could end talks with Everton out of anger at Toffees' claim £60m Richarlison deal to blame for points deduction

Everton signed Dele from Tottenham on a free transfer in January 2022, bringing to an end his seven-year stay in North London. The Toffees also agreed to pay Spurs a £10m fee once the English midfielder passed 20 appearances, and he is now seven games away from reaching that total.

According to the Daily Mail, Everton held talks with Spurs last month over a potential restructuring of the Alli deal. The Toffees would struggle to pay his fee in full due to their current financial problems, and Tottenham were open to a settlement that would suit all parties. However, the report also states that Spurs have reacted angrily to a claim from Everton in the 41-page written judgment published by the Premier League last week in relation to Richarlison's transfer to the club in the summer of 2022.

Everton claim that Daniel Levy's refusal to fork out £80m ($100m) for the Brazilian forward led to their points deduction for breaching the Premier League's financial rules. The Toffees ended up settling for a fee that was £20m ($25m) short of their original valuation, which the club says was "directly attributable to PSR calculation difficulties". The Mail states that Spurs find the accusation against their chairman 'absurd' and it has been suggested that the relationship between the two clubs has been damaged beyond repair.

The independent commission ultimately rejected Everton's attempt to use the Richarlison deal as mitigation for their over-spending, which has left Dele in limbo. The 27-year-old has not played any competitive football since picking up an injury while on loan at Besiktas in February. Everton boss Sean Dyche has left the door open for Dele to get back in his team if he can prove his fitness, but the former England international has also been battling mental health problems away from the pitch and it's not yet clear when he will return to action.