England star Dele Alli lands one-match ban for middle-finger gesture and will miss World Cup clash with Slovenia
- England face Slovenia at Wembley in a World Cup qualifier next week
- Dele Alli will miss the game after he raised his middle finger against Slovakia
- The Tottenham star insisted it was a joke but FIFA deemed it worthy of a ban
- It comes after boss Gareth Southgate admitted he had concerns over his squad
Dele Alli will be available for the start of next summer’s World Cup after FIFA accepted his explanation for a controversial middle-finger gesture.
The Tottenham midfielder will miss Thursday’s qualifier against Slovenia at Wembley after being banned for one match for the gesture he made during his country’s win over Slovakia earlier this month. He was also fined £3,800.
It is a huge relief to England manager Gareth Southgate, who feared Alli would be handed a longer suspension, thus making him ineligible for the start of Russia 2018. Alli and the FA have maintained the gesture was aimed at team-mate Kyle Walker and not referee Clement Turpin.
Dele Alli has been banned for the match against Slovenia for his middle-finger gesture
Gareth Southgate will be without his star playmaker following his gesture against Slovakia
The FA compiled a detailed dossier to back up Alli’s story, knowing that such a gesture to an official would warrant a four-game ban.
FIFA accepted Alli’s gesture was directed at Walker and not the referee. Nevertheless, Alli was still handed a one-match ban after world football’s governing body ruled that it was ‘offensive and unsporting’.
A FIFA statement said: ‘Following the incident during the match between England and Slovakia, Dele Alli has been sanctioned with a suspension for one official match and a fine of 5,000 Swiss francs for making an offensive and unsporting gesture.
‘Although the disciplinary committee was not convinced that the player directed the gesture at the referee, and regardless of whether it was allegedly directed at a team-mate, it did consider such a gesture to be offensive and unsporting.’
Southgate said: ‘He’s a good kid who wants to improve. He’s not somebody who doesn’t want to listen. His world is changing and it’s becoming far more high-profile and there’s a responsibility as other kids are looking at him.’
The England boss admitted he wasn't entirely happy with the squad he has selected
Alli will join Jamie Vardy and Adam Lallana among the attacking options who are unavailable
The England boss had provisionally included the Tottenham star in his squad for the upcoming qualifiers against Slovenia and Lithuania, but admitted he ran the risk of looking silly should a ban be imposed.
'We run the risk of looking a shambles because he could get withdrawn again,' Southgate said on Thursday following his squad announcement.
'The hope is that common sense prevails.'
The England manager admitted he was not entirely happy with his squad after some key players had ruled themselves out of selection through injury.
Southgate rattled off about seven or eight names who were omitted from the squad due to lack of fitness, including attacking options Adam Lallana and Jamie Vardy.
Alli's suspension will further add to the Three Lions' attacking woes, however Southgate will hope his side have enough firepower to overcome Slovenia, who will be chomping at the bit to leapfrog Slovakia into second place.
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