Dele Alli will always be a cheating diver to some refs

Former Premier League referee Mark Halsey fears Tottenham midfielder Dele Alli now has a reputation as a cheat among match officials in the top tier of English football, as he suggests the England star could receive special treatment from referees due to his past success in winning decisions due to simulation.

In an exclusive column for Yahoo Sport, Halsey has suggested Alli’s past offences are now coming back to haunt him, even though referees should judge each incident on its merits.

Tottenham’s Dele Alli has developed a reputation for being a diver and it will be hard for him to shake that tag with Premier League match officials.

While referees should assess each decision on the evidence before them, they are fully aware of players who have conned their way to penalty decisions in the past and Alli’s reputation now goes before him, with the consequences evident in the last few days.

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Alli was cautioned for simulation once again as he fell in the box against Liverpool at Anfield on Sunday and while I would not criticise referee Jon Moss in his decision to award a yellow card for the incident, I suspect the identity of the player involved played a part in his final decision.

It could be argued that Alli did not dive or try to deceive the officials as he fell in the box during the second half of the game at Anfield and that his momentum contributed to his fall when he lost his balance, yet when you have a reputation for diving, the benefit of the doubt that a majority of players are given is taken away and that is the position Alli finds himself in now.

He should have been awarded a penalty for a challenge in last week’s Premier League game against Manchester United at Wembley after a challenge from Antonio Valencia, but Andre Marriner did not give the decision and again, I would suggest it may be because Alli was the player involved.

When a referee has been bitten by a player successfully duping him into making a decision, he will not forget that incident and Alli is now in a position that makes it hard for him to get marginal decisions from Premier League officials.

That is a big problem for him and Tottenham, but he has helped to create this problem for himself.

Mark Halsey is a former Premier League referee and works with You Are The Ref as senior referee coach.