Dele Alli wearing pain of England’s past as armour as he looks towards the World Cup in Russia

Dele Alli insists that England will wear their humiliating Euro 2016 exit to Iceland as armour as they look to restore some semblance of national pride in Russia this summer.

The defeat to the European minnows in France ended the Tottenham Hotspur midfielder’s first experience of an international tournament, something he admits was one of the worst moments of his career so far.

Since then, England have changed their manager (twice) and revitalised the squad with an influx of youth which has seen 21-year-old Alli become one of the more senior members of Gareth Southgate’s Three Lions heading to the World Cup.

With England now preparing for a friendly double-header against two traditional World Cup powerhouse, both of whom will be absent from this summer’s showpiece event, Alli is using the pain and disappointment to spur him on.

“The Euros was one of the best experiences of my career and one of the worst at the same time,” he said. “But everything’s a new experience and you learn from it all.

“To be a part of it for your country, growing up you see the big tournaments being played, you see it on the TV, look at all the flags flying out of the windows and seeing how much it means to the country, to be a part of it was massive but the way it ended was a huge disappointment.

“As a team, it would have been quite easy to hide, not to look back on it and get it out of your memory, but it was important that we went through it so it doesn’t happen again. I think as a team and as individuals we’re stronger from going through that.

“It was a very sad time for me, not just for me but for all of the players. We felt that we not only let our country down, but we let ourselves down as well.

“As soon as I came back to Tottenham, I spoke to the manager and spoke to the other boys. I knew we had to get on with it, keep improving, you can’t let it drag you down, you have to look forward and do whatever you need to do to make it right.”

While Alli is looked up to as one of the more senior squad members given his experience in the pressure cookers of the Champions League and European Championships, he is still too young to remember any World Cup where England left with their heads held high, something which makes him more aware what a good performance in Russia would mean at home.

“Because I didn’t watch too much football when I was younger, it wasn’t so much the actual tournament but more like everybody wearing England shirts at school.

“I remember one time walking at the bottom of my estate. I was walking to the other end and England must have been playing because everyone was in their gardens, there was music playing and flags everywhere.

“Everyone knows how big it is for the country and we are looking to make new memories and be part of something great. As players, it’s important you don’t forget where you come from and what you’ve done to get where you are, so I will definitely be thinking about how big it is.”