Team Of The Season – Dele Alli

Expectations were high for Spurs’ Dele Alli entering the 2016/17 campaign.

On the back of an outstanding debut season, which yielded 10 goals and 12 assists in Fantasy Premier League (FPL), the midfielder was handed a price tag of 8.5.

Following a slow start, he finished as the second-highest scoring player in the game, with a 225-point haul more than enough for Alli to claim a spot in our Team of the Season for the second successive year.

The Statistics

Perhaps in part as a result of England’s disappointing Euro 2016 campaign, Alli struggled at the beginning of the season, blanking in his first three appearances.

He did register three goals and an assist in his following five starts, but by Gameweek 13, Alli’s price had dropped to 8.1, with just 183,688 managers retaining him in their squad.

It was over the festive period that Alli’s season began to take off, with a goal in the 2-1 win over Burnley in Gameweek 17 followed by three consecutive braces, seeing the midfielder average 13.25 points per match over that spell.

Those eye-catching performances inevitably saw Alli’s FPL ownership and price shoot up, with the attacker found in over 1,200,000 squads by Gameweek 24, with his value by this stage hitting 8.9.

He produced another scintillating run of form between Gameweeks 26 and 33, registering five goals and four assists, and he ended the campaign with a seventh double-figure haul of the season in the 7-1 demolition of Hull City.

The 21-year-old’s price peaked at 9.2 during the final weeks of a campaign in which he delivered 18 goals and 11 assists.

Alli didn’t fare too well in terms of bonus points though, managing only 17, compared to 30 for his Spurs team-mate Christian Eriksen.

In terms of his underlying statistics, he ranked fourth among FPL midfielders for shots inside the box, with 59, and joint-fourth for shots on target (43), with his goal threat key to his success as a Fantasy asset.

The Prospects

Alli is likely to enter 2017/18 as one of the most desirable midfielders in FPL.

Building on the 166 points he accrued in 2015/16, he is now recognised as one of the leading attacking midfielders in the Premier League and looks certain to be the subject of another initial price rise next season.

He could well come in around the 9.0 to 10 mark, likely to place him as one of the most expensive midfielders behind Arsenal’s Alexis Sanchez and Chelsea’s Eden Hazard – providing the Chilean isn’t re-classified as a forward.

After mounting a title challenge during the 2015/16 campaign, when they eventually finished third with 70 points, Mauricio Pochettino’s side improved to second with an impressive 86 points this time around.

They were also the highest scoring team with 86 goals, producing more goals attempts (669) than any other club.

In Alli, Eriksen and Golden Boot winner Harry Kane, Spurs boast one of the most devastating attacks in the top flight, and with another year of experience under his belt, there’s every chance Alli will be able to kick on further next season.

One of the running narratives throughout the season was the debate over who out of Alli and Eriksen was the stronger Fantasy asset.

Both players averaged 6.1 points per match, with the Dane finishing seven points behind Alli in the overall FPL standings on 218 points.

When assessing their underlying statistics, it’s Eriksen who leads a lot of the key categories.

He created 112 chances, more than any other FPL midfielder, with Alli managing just 52.

Eriksen also produced more goal attempts (133) than any other FPL midfielder – Alli registered 92 – although as already alluded to, he did shine in terms of close-range efforts.

That battle between the pair looks set to rumble again next season, with the duo likely to remain among the highest scoring midfielders in the game.

One issue that Spurs will have to overcome is the move to Wembley – a ground where they managed just win in five matches this season.

But with this young Spurs side maturing year by year, there’s every expectation we’ll once again be turning to their leading Fantasy assets in our droves.

Alli will certainly be among them, although with Kane likely to be a key target for many FPL bosses when drawing up their Gameweek 1 squads, he could still struggle to attract big investment.

That could even mean that he starts the campaign as he did the 2016/17 – as a surprise early-season differential.