BT Sport pundits Peter Crouch and Glenn Hoddle have questioned Tottenham Hotspur manager Jose Mourinho's decision to field Dele Alli as a striker for tonight's crunch UEFA Champions League clash with RB Leipzig in Germany.
With both Harry Kane and Heung-Min Son sidelined through injury for Spurs, Mourinho has been left incredibly light on attacking options, meaning he has been forced to choose Alli as his out-and-out striker in the Red Bull Arena tonight.
But despite Mourinho's selection problems, his decision to pick Alli to play in this role has been met with disappointment from Crouch and Hoddle, both of whom cannot quite understand the Portuguese chief's thinking behind the decision.
"He is hugely important for Spurs, he always was. But considering they [Harry Kane and Heung-Min Son] have gone, he becomes even more important for them," Crouch told BT Sport.
"We were talking before, weren't we, that we are just not too sure about him playing up top on his own. I just feel that it is not his game with his back to goal. I could feel his frustration in the first-leg because he was asked to play up top on his own and was asked to do a job defensively.
"There wasn't many chances for him and I just think he looked a little bit lost. He is much better when he is attacking the ball from midfield."
Throughout his career, Alli has operated as an attacking midfielder, linking the midfield and attack with his clever passes and smart vision. And with that in mind, Hoddle cannot understand why Mourinho has chosen to start Alli as a striker.
Hoddle said: "He cannot play up front, it is as simple as that. He has got to come from deep and arrive in the penalty area. He scores so many goals in that scenario.
"If you were the No.1 striker, you would get picked up by the centre-backs. You cannot come into the box and arrive there."
