The Rise and Fall of Dele Alli

Gray was never seen as a poor influence, or called lazy by various managers. In addition, Gray was a low-key signing, initially expected to be a squad player, joining on low wages.

Meanwhile, Alli joins with all the hype, on high wages, and a potential fee of around 20 times what Gray cost.

Andy Gray. Someone we bought after the 1983 winter of discontent. If I recall, many believed he was past his best despite only being 27 or 28? He was a gamble. By his own subsequent admission, hid some of his medical records.

Went through that barren patch but we rioted when he scored a brace against Leicester away. And although we were able to secure English football's most sought after striker, we were gutted that it meant Gray headed for the exit. I was. In today's squad focussed game, that might not have happened.

Demarai Gray (ole, ole, ole). A Leicester reject who has been one of the few shining lights of an underperforming team at a dysfunctional club and another winter of discontent.

How you spend, not what you spend. Some players fit into a club and system with a different manager than they did in others.

Let's see what Alli can do for Everton. I'll judge him on that.

However, I do have reservations.

Alli is someone who has hit real heights very early on - and probably expected to be playing for Real or PSG at this stage of his career, competing for titles and Champions League trophies.

At Everton he is initially involved in steering the side back up towards mid-table. That's okay this season because there's a novelty factor etc.

But next season and beyond, he's going to have to dig very deep indeed to get himself motivated for the prospect of mid-table and no trophies. This is a serious step down for him. This sort of thing has affected quite a few of our players.

Where Everton represents a step up in careers, players seem to find it easier to maintain their motivation. Less so where it's a step down.

At the end of the day these guys are already rich beyond our comprehension, and really don't need to work so hard (or at all).

For someone already experiencing motivational issues it is going to be difficult to recover past excellent form. I honestly expect Alli will give us some excellent moments but will often disappoint too. He won't ever consistently be the player he was a few years ago at Spurs.

Lampard can help by changing the culture of the club, being braver in attack and targeting the cups. This is exactly what Martinez did and it nearly worked before the wheels came off. Hopefully it all combines to get us a cup and a shot at European competition again.

But the difference here is he is coming to play for a manager who he knows believes in him, and that for any player is massive. Lampard knows his strengths and will play to those strengths, some managers as we have seen too often at Everton try to shoehorn players into playing a role they aren't comfortable with.

That won't be the case with Lampard he will play Dele just off the main striker and have him making runs beyond the main striker. As Lampard has already said, one of Alli's strengths is finding space in the box and making runs in behind defenders.

I also think the signing of Alli has taken a lot of pressure off Donny van de Beek, who can play without the possible expectation he would have been under if we hadn't signed Alli.

He's lost his way in a club that's fallen away, keeps sacking managers and has a squad that doesn't seem to work.

He's just turned up at an even more dysfunctional club – and this for a player who might have been a world record transfer fee about 3 years ago.

It has taken some guts to move to a club like ours where there is no, or very little, tolerance for laziness or bad attitude, and he will be well aware of the dogs abuse he will receive if he's not being seen to put in a shift after a relatively easy time at Spurs riding on the coats tails of his early promise and success. I'm sure he recognses in Lampard - with whom there will be much mutual respect - a gaffer with whom he can work and find some of his old mojo.

Potentially this could be a fantastic signing. I don't know the details of his personal terms but we seem to have struck a decent deal with Tottenham and I don't see Alli as a Delph type freeloader. I understand he could cost us something like £40m (if he does well) but I feel considerably better about this than the similar amount we stumped up for Siggy 4 years ago.