Dele Alli has gone backwards since being hailed as English football's first £100million-man-in-waiting. That joyous Champions League occasion at Wembley when he scored twice against Real Madrid at the beginning of last month is already a distant memory.
His poor form and lack of goals is symptomatic of a Tottenham team lacking form and goals. A third consecutive Premier League title challenge is not happening, even a top-four finish looks ambitious at the moment.
At Manchester City on Saturday night, it was dirty Dele rather than delicious Dele who turned up for the live television cameras
The 21-year-old grew increasingly frustrated at chasing shadows as Spurs were comprehensively outplayed.