Tottenham Hotspur are back in competitive action on Thursday night, with a Europa League clash against Maccabi Haifa standing between the club and the group stages of the competition.
With Spurs playing against Newcastle last Sunday and having a tough Carabao Cup game against Chelsea on Tuesday night, Jose Mourinho will need to rotate his squad again for the European tie.
Tottenham’s attacking options are plentiful and over recent weeks the lack of game-time received by Dele Alli has made headline news.
With the Spurs attacking midfielder’s future in North London up in the air ahead of Monday’s transfer window closure, whether the England international features tonight will be a key indicator of whether he is set to remain part of Mourinho’s plans.
However, the Tottenham manager praised Alli’s attitude and professionalism in his pre-match press conference and stated the versatile star could feature against Haifa.
Given that being dropped from the Spurs side will have focused Alli’s mind, could this be a Mourinho masterstroke to get the best out of the talented star?
Tottenham’s potential front three of Gareth Bale, Harry Kane and Son Heung-min is a mouth-watering proposition, but having a fit and firing Alli available as well could turn this into a quartet.
The midfielder has shown that when he is angry and has a point to prove, Spurs can benefit.
Mourinho is a master of mindgames – dropping Alli and sowing the seed that he could possibly leave Tottenham might well be the spark to reignite his career in North London.