Alli’s amazing year

It is exactly one year ago on Tuesday that Dele Alli was named the Football League’s Young Player of the Year having scored 16 goals in a stellar campaign at MK Dons.

The midfielder was back at the League One club on loan having agreed his £5m move to Spurs a few weeks earlier, and in an interview with Sky Sports that evening he insisted he was going to White Hart Lane with the intention of winning a first-team place.

“I’m really looking forward to the challenge,” he said. “Obviously having been at MK my whole life it’s going to be a big step for me, but I’m going to keep fighting for my place there and see what I can do.”

The comments seemed fanciful for a teenager with no top-flight experience, but Alli has fulfilled his ambition in style. The 20-year-old has been a key figure in Tottenham’s Premier League title charge, with his superb double against Stoke on Monday Night Football coming exactly a year after netting for MK Dons in a 6-1 win over Leyton Orient.

Here, we look back at the key moments in his amazing breakthrough year, including his Spurs debut, his first appearance for England, and Monday’s heroics at the Britannia Stadium…

Pre-season promise (August 4, 2015)

Pre-season provided some tantalising glimpses of what was to come from Alli, starting with an eye-catching Audi Cup appearance against Real Madrid at the Allianz Arena.

The teenager was lining up against Rochdale and Yeovil Town just three months previously, but he introduced himself to one of the world’s biggest clubs with audacious nutmegs on Luka Modric and Toni Kroos.

Spurs debut (August 8)

Mauricio Pochettino showed his faith in Alli by handing him his first-team debut as a substitute in Tottenham’s 1-0 defeat by Manchester United on the opening day of the season at Old Trafford.

The youngster only had 13 minutes on the pitch but showed he wasn’t afraid to get stuck in, earning a yellow card for a foul on Ashley Young in stoppage time. “I give a lot of credit to the manager for putting his trust in me and giving me my debut at Old Trafford,” he later reflected.

First goal (August 22)

Alli marked his next appearance with his first goal for Spurs after replacing Erik Lamela midway through the second half against Leicester at the King Power Stadium.

His big moment came when he headed home Nacer …

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