Tottenham midfielder Dele Alli says the abuse that Manchester City winger Raheem Sterling has received over the course of his career is the worst he has witnessed.
Sterling was the victim of sustained abuse during England's ill-fated Euro 2016 campaign, which saw the Three Lions dumped out of the competition at the last-16 stage by Iceland.
The 24-year-old has since condemned racial abuse that was aimed at him during City's defeat against Chelsea in December with an Instagram post questioning the contrasting ways in which the successes of young black and white footballers have been portrayed by the media.
The move was heralded as a turning point in the fight against racism in football and Alli says Sterling is a credit to himself.
"The worst I've ever seen is Raheem at the Euros," the 23-year-old told the Otro app ahead of City's Champions League quarter-final second leg against Spurs on Wednesday night.
Man City boss Pep Guardiola explains his tactical decisions vs Tottenham
"He is honestly one of the best people you could meet in terms of how he's dealt with everything.
"That was my first major tournament and Raheem's a year older than me. I don't know how I would have handled all the heat that they were putting on him.
"Raheem was playing first team a lot sooner than I was and was a much bigger name before I started coming onto the scene.
"I already had this picture of him from what I'd seen and when you meet him he's one of the nicest people I've ever worked with and he's so focused and dedicated. But you hear and read all this s**t about him."
