Former Tottenham midfielder says he would have ‘preferred a goal’ after being dismissed on debut for Como following challenge on Ruben Loftus-Cheek in defeat at AC Milan
Dele Alli was sent off only ten minutes into his first competitive appearance in more than two years after a tackle on his former England team-mate Ruben Loftus-Cheek.
Making his first appearance for Como as they took on AC Milan in Serie A on Saturday night, Dele, 28, caught the back of Loftus-Cheek’s left leg with his studs and the incident at the San Siro was referred to the video assistant referee.
As the referee, Matteo Marchetti, brandished the red card, Milan’s Kyle Walker, who played with Dele for both England and Tottenham Hotspur, appeared to plead with the official not to send him off.
In a tongue-in-cheek statement on Instagram, Dele said: “I was always going to announce my return in some way after these past two years, would rather it had been with a goal, but feels good to be back.”
The flashpoint spoilt a landmark day for the midfielder, whose previous competitive appearance came for Besiktas in February 2023.
Dele, who has 37 England caps and impressed on their run to the 2018 World Cup semi-finals, had moved to the Turkish club on loan from Everton, but the deal was cut short because of injury in 2023 and later that summer he checked into a rehabilitation centre in the United States, in an effort to overcome an addiction to sleeping pills.
He spent six weeks at the clinic but, upon his return to Everton, was unable to overcome a litany of injury problems and his contract expired last summer.
Everton had extended an invitation for Dele to continue to train with them as he looked to relaunch his career, yet he opted to move to Como, initially on trial, in the new year, eager to pursue a fresh start and reignite his career.
The Serie A club, who are coached by the former Arsenal, Barcelona and Chelsea midfielder Cesc Fàbregas, offered him an 18-month contract and in recent weeks he has been named in their match-day squads.
His long-awaited return to action arrived when he replaced Como’s goalscorer, Lucas de Cunha, in the 81st minute at the San Siro on Saturday evening.
