Tottenham Hotspur were making sharp progress under Mauricio Pochettino when the Argentine became manager in 2014, with a Premier League title challenge and Champions League final appearance following in the years after his arrival.
One player who proved imperative to Spurs during that period under Pochettino was Dele, who signed for the club for £5m as an 18-year-old in the 2015 winter transfer window - though Tottenham almost missed out on him, according to former manager and director of football David Pleat.
Having been impressed with Dele's performances at MK Dons, Pleat invited technical director Franco Baldini to watch the teenager in League One action. Spurs stalled on taking action, though, and nearly missed out on his talent, as Pleat highlights what his role at Tottenham has been in recent years.
Tottenham almost missed out on signing Dele
"[My role at Spurs in recent years has been] consultant and scout," Pleat tells FourFourTwo. "I’m very pleased with one or two players who came in where I had an influence, one being Jack Clarke. None of the managers handled him well. He can play.
"There was Dele Alli, too. I took Franco Baldini to watch him and he was on his phone the whole time – he didn’t even watch him. I’ve got six reports on Dele over a period of two years; they should’ve reacted after my first two. Eventually they heard he was going to Aston Villa or Newcastle. They rang me and I said, 'Well, fancy that? Serves you right. You have to get hold of him.' They did the deal really quickly and I persuaded the chairman that £5m wasn’t too much to pay.
"At one stage they could have sold him for over £80m, then things happened. I’m sad because I saw him at 16 and he already had that stature about him, and he could play, too."
While Dele moved to Everton in 2022 in a deal that could have risen to £40m, he is now without a contract, though he continues to train with the Merseysiders as he seeks a return to football.
Pleat, meanwhile, recently stopped working for Tottenham. The 79-year-old isn't intent on retiring now, though, as he also looks to get back into the game in some capacity.
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"I finished at Tottenham recently," Pleat says. "I was the last scout standing – they’ve gone for data completely now. Good luck to them, but there’s a place for scouts. A scout can tell you things data can’t: if the boy is popular with his team-mates, how he reacts when he hasn’t got the ball, what he’s like off the field... Your contacts will tell you that. You’ll know enough people.
"I intend to stay in football, and I’ve been talking to one or two people – I will continue."
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