Mauricio Pochettino: 'Dele Alli an easy target for abuse'

Mauricio Pochettino has once again attempted to defend Dele Alli after the midfielder was accused of trying to con the officials in Tottenham Hotspur's 1-0 win at Crystal Palace.

The 21-year-old went down inside the penalty box under minimal contact from opposition keeper Wayne Hennessey and also wanted a spot kick after being challenged by Patrick van Aanholt.

Alli was labelled a diver by a number of former pros on social media, including both Alan Shearer and Gary Lineker, but Spurs boss Pochettino feels that the Englishman has built up an undeserved reputation.

"He is an easy target for everyone. We need to stop saying too much about him to stop helping people, the fans, creating this reputation," he told reporters at full time.

"He's so competitive and played very well but Dele is an easy target. Dele is such a special kid. He's going to play. He's going to show his quality. He won't worry what people are saying about him."

Tottenham earned the three points that lifted them into fourth place thanks to a late goal from leading scorer Harry Kane.