Dele Alli’s most iconic moments for Tottenham and England

When Dele Alli burst onto the scene eight years ago with MK Dons, he instantly became one of England's most promising young midfielders.

Since joining Tottenham Hotspur in 2015, Alli has played in a Champions League final, World Cup semi-final and racked up a whole host of individual honours.

At just 25 years old, he has played well over 300 professional games and amassed 37 caps for England. With his best years still ahead of him, Planet Sport celebrates Dele Alli's most iconic moments.

Breaking through with MK Dons

As a 17-year-old, the attacking midfielder became a key starter for Karl Robinson's team, making 33 appearances while registering nine goals/assists and winning the club's Young Player of the Year award.

Clubs higher up the divisions began to take notice, but Alli ended up staying at MK Dons for another season, one which proved to be his best so far.

The highlight of the season, and maybe in MK Dons' history, came in the 4-0 League Cup victory over Manchester United that reportedly saw scouts from Liverpool and Bayern Munich in attendance to watch Alli first-hand.

Signing for Tottenham Hotspur

Alli put pen to paper for Spurs in February 2015, before the London club loaned him back to MK Dons for the remainder of the season.

The £5million signing shone in high-profile games, including the north London derby against Arsenal where a man-of-the-match display was followed by a new long-term contract just days later.

Like in his previous seasons, Alli collected numerous end-of-season awards. This time, he added the PFA Young Player of the Year and PFA Team of the Year to his honours list.

England debut

Despite attempts by Nigeria to convince Alli to declare for them, he made his debut for England, coming on as a substitute in a 2-0 win over Estonia.

A month later, Alli made his first start for the Three Lions against France and scored from distance to open his account on the international stage.

In March 2016, in a Euros warm-up against Germany in Berlin, England came from two goals down to win 3-2. Alli consequently won the BBC's man-of-the-match award for his influential performance in overturning the deficit.

That goal against Crystal Palace

It's up there with some of the best goals in Premier League history. Alli received the ball on the edge of the box, took a touch, flicked it up and over an onrushing Palace defender and proceeded to effortlessly volley home into the bottom corner.

It was a piece of breathtaking brilliance and is arguably Alli's most eyecatching individual moment.

The solo effort was enough to secure Alli the BBC Goal of the Season award at the conclusion of the 2015/16 campaign.

An even better 2016/17

After announcing himself in the Premier League the previous season, expectations were high in 2016/17. Yet Alli still managed to exceed them.

Alli's stock had never been higher, with his remarkable numbers attracting interest from soccer powerhouses Real Madrid and Barcelona.

Alli became a victim of his own success the following campaign, with fans and pundits expecting him to kick on to even bigger and better things.

Alli produced 15 goals and 17 assists, but still faced criticism from the media for the inconsistent nature of his performances. It proved to be the start of a rough patch for Alli and he is yet to rediscover his prolific goalscoring touch for Spurs.

2018 World Cup

Alli was a starter for England at the 2018 World Cup in Russia, playing alongside Jesse Lingard as Jordan Henderson anchored the midfield.

He scored the second goal of the quarter-final win over Sweden and won the free-kick scored by Kieran Trippier in the semi-final against Croatia.

Next up on the international stage for Alli was the Nations League finals. England bowed out in the semi-final against the Netherlands and Alli was limited to a brief appearance.

Alli hasn't been included in an England squad since the summer of 2019 and has fallen down the pecking order behind the likes of Phil Foden and Jack Grealish.

His midfield partner at the World Cup, Lingard, found himself in an almost identical situation. And Alli can take heart from Lingard's renaissance following his recent move to West Ham, with the 28-year-old now almost certain to be part of Gareth Southgate's squad for this summer's Euros.

Champions League final

Just months later Spurs head coach Mauricio Pochettino, who had developed and nurtured Alli since the beginning of his time at Tottenham, parted ways with the club and was replaced by Jose Mourinho.

Alli and Mourinho never saw eye to eye throughout his tenure and, as a result, the England international spent 18 months on the periphery of the Spurs starting XI.

However, with Mourinho Roma-bound, there will be a new manager for Alli to impress and the chance to deliver on the promise he should in his early years at Spurs.