Tottenham Hotspur and England attacking midfielder Dele Alli suffered a thigh problem in England’s 2-1 win over Tunisia on Monday. The severity of the injury isn’t clear, but several reports indicate that Alli is a doubt for Sunday’s World Cup group stage clash against Panama.
The Evening Standard went so far as to say that Alli’s entire tournament is now in serious jeopardy, but other media outlets convey a much more optimistic outlook.
Sky Sports writes that: “the 22-year-old went for a scan as his team-mates trained on Tuesday afternoon and will be managed carefully over the coming days.”
With Dele Alli likely missing out on Sunday, it’s possible that he could be held out of next week’s toughest group G match against Belgium. It all depends on the result versus Panama and how Alli progresses over the next few days of training, where he will no doubt be highly monitored.
Three Lions may not want to risk him against Belgium, and instead save him for the knockout round, should they qualify. As it stands right now, the chances of England advancing beyond the group stages is quite high. With Alli out of the starting XI, Manchester United’s Jesse Lingard could take his place in the starting lineup, but more likely it will be Chelsea man Ruben Loftus-Cheek, who fits in very well to what England boss Gareth Southgate likes to do at that position.
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