Tottenham's Dele Alli should not have been sent off against Fiorentina, say 55 per cent of Standard Sport readers

Controversial: Dele Alli received a booking for an apparent kick out against a Fiorentina defender
Clive Rose/Getty Images
Vaishali Bhardwaj19 February 2016

A Standard Sport poll has revealed that 55 per cent of voting fans believe Tottenham star Dele Alli was rightfully not sent off for his apparent kick out on opponent Nenad Tomovic in the first half of the team's Europa League clash with Fiorentina on Thursday.

The 19-year-old escaped a red card, but was booked, after catching Tomovic with his boot on the half-hour mark of Spurs' last-32 clash with Fiorentina in Italy.

Tottenham coach Mauricio Pochettino said after the game Alli - who has been in superb form for the north London club this season - still "has a lot to learn about elite football" while the player said he never intended to hurt Tomovic.

And 55 per cent of the 603 fans who voted in our online poll about whether Alli should have been sent off in Florence believe that a booking was fair.

Forty-five per cent of voting readers, however, think Alli's actions deserved a straight red card.

Despite the debate about the incident, the Tottenham star told Standard Sport after the game, which ended 1-1, he has no plans to change his aggressive style of play.

"My personality is that I like to express myself and that is not something I will look to change," he said.

"Do you need an aggressive streak to thrive? You could say that. A lot of the great players have that mentality. I want to be the best I can and if that’s what I need to do it, that’s what I do."

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