Newcastle United were linked with a January move for England international Dele Alli but PIF and Eddie Howe opted against signing the midfielder.
The Daily Mail reported that Newcastle were looking at signing Alli from Tottenham Hotspur in the January transfer window.
But the midfielder eventually moved to Everton.
The former Tottenham Hotspur midfielder started the first six Premier League games of the season under Nuno Espirito Santo, but beyond September, he only made two further top-flight starts for the north London side.
The 25-year-old found himself out-of-favour under Antonio Conte and needed a move in an attempt to reignite his career.
Alli’s first three seasons in the Premier League were electric but his form has significantly nosedived ever since, and he has seemingly struggled to recapture that consistency and appetite, which saw him burst onto the scene.
The former MK Dons youngster’s career hasn’t really recovered ever since Mauricio Pochettino departed the club and his career started to stagnate under the stewardship of Jose Mourinho.
With a World Cup on the horizon this winter, Alli’s name doesn’t even enter the conversation when deliberating who Gareth Southgate should name in his 23-man England squad.
It will be three years this June when Alli last played for the Three Lions and it’s hard to see where his 38th cap for his country will come from.
Back in January and with the transfer window open, Sky Sports pundit Roy Keane felt that Newcastle would be a good destination for Alli to try and rebuild his career.
“I think the kid’s lost the eye of the tiger,” said Keane of Alli on Sky Sports Premier League (7:23pm, January 23, 2022).
“Sometimes you have to let the kid go, that’s the nature of football.
“You’ve done your time here, you’ve lost your way – be good to the kid. He’s been a good signing – they paid £5m for him – let the kid go.”
When asked where Alli could move to, Keane replied: “Newcastle? Get his career going up there, the fans would love him.”
A move to Tyneside never came to fruition for Alli, he instead joined Frank Lampard’s Everton on a two-and-a-half-year deal for a fee that could reach £40m (BBC Sport).
The move to Merseyside isn’t going to plan for either Lampard or Alli with Everton flirting with relegation, and ahead of Newcastle’s Thursday night trip to Goodison Park, Alli is yet to be handed his first Premier League start for his new side.
Alli is yet to start a Premier League game in 2022 and he has come off the bench in all six of his appearances for the Toffees.
The switch to the North West was intended to be the fresh start he needed to rebuild his career, but as it stands his ongoing struggles vindicate Newcastle’s decision to steer clear of him in the winter window.
Despite Everton’s struggles, it symbolises how far Dele Alli has fallen that it would be deemed a surprise to see him named in Everton’s starting line-up for the clash against Eddie Howe’s side.
Unlike Alli, Newcastle’s January signings have all hit the ground running and PIF will be hoping to have the same level of success when making high-profile acquisitions in the summer transfer market.
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