Dele Alli's former manager Karl Robinson has revealed he offered the free agent a move to League Two side Salford City this summer. The 30-year-old midfielder has been without a club since leaving Italian side Como in the summer of 2025, having made just one appearance during his six-month spell there.
Robinson's Offer and Concerns
Robinson, who coached Alli during his time at Milton Keynes Dons, said the player is always welcome to join him wherever he goes. Speaking on the podcast No Tippy Tappy Football, he said: "If a job comes up, Dele Alli is always more than welcome to come anywhere I go, if he wants to. All I can say is that I hope he's well, I hope he's healthy, and I hope he's in a good place."
He added: "If he ticks all those boxes, I don't care about whether he's a footballer. I worry about Dele as a young man – he is someone that I will always be there to pick up the phone to. I would 100% give him a chance. I saw him in the gym in June, and I told him to come to Salford. But he probably looked at me and went, 'gaffer, come on, I'm not doing that.'"
Self-Belief and Career Decline
Robinson believes Alli still has the self-belief to play at the highest level, even suggesting the midfielder might think he could help Manchester United. "The reason why these players become these players is because they've got self-belief. I guarantee if you sat down with him now, he'd probably say he could change the fortune at Manchester United – because that's how top players who produce moments of magic think," he said.
Alli came through the Milton Keynes Dons youth system, playing 88 times under Robinson before joining Tottenham in 2015. He later moved to Everton on a free transfer in January 2022, spent the 2022/23 season on loan at Beşiktaş, and left Everton in 2024. Robinson reflected on Alli's rise, noting comparisons to Lionel Messi, David Beckham, Zinedine Zidane, and James Rodriguez when he left MK Dons at 18.
Current Activities
Alli has since moved into live-streaming on Twitch, where he has broadcast himself phoning former team-mates including Jack Grealish, James Maddison, and Harry Kane. He also streams his gym workouts and training sessions as he continues his search for a new club.
