Dele Alli is on the verge of joining Turkish Super Lig side Besiktas.

The now 26-year-old was once one of the finest young talents in Europe.

So much so, that former Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino once compared him to the great footballing icons Ronaldinho and Diego Maradona.

But fast forward to the modern day, and Alli has fallen off the wagon of progression.

Gone are the comparisons to footballing legends or talk of a big future with England.

He's now an outcast from Spurs, unwanted by Everton, and heading towards what nearly all football fans would consider an almighty step down in his career.

Which makes one particular conversation between him and Jose Mourinho seem even more poignant now.

Mourinho lays it bare for Alli

Mourinho had an open and honest one-to-one conversation with Alli that was aired on Amazon's documentary, 'All or Nothing: Tottenham Hotspur'.

In the chat, Mourinho tells Alli that he needs to put the effort in and fulfil his potential or he will regret it later in life.

“Maybe, inside, you are telling me to f*** off, but I have to tell you exactly what I see,” Mourinho said.

“I have no doubts about your potential. I saw you do incredible things in incredible matches. But I always felt that you had ups and downs.

“There is a huge difference between a player who has consistency and a player who has moments. That is what makes the difference between a top, top player and a player with top potential.

“It is something to analyse yourself for you to realise why your career has been MK Dons, Tottenham, national team… bang!

Dele Alli in action for Tottenham

Dele Alli in action for Tottenham

“Then, when you reached the top, why do you have these little ups and downs?

“I don’t know if it is to do with your lifestyle – if in one period you were an amazing professional but in another period you felt you had become a party boy.

“I have no idea – only you can know that.

“I am 56 now and yesterday I was 20. Time flies.

“One day I think you will regret it if you don’t reach what you can reach.

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“I am not expecting you to be the Man-of-the-Match every game. I am not expecting you to score goals every game. I want just to tell you that you will regret it.

“You should demand more from yourself. It should not be me demanding more from you.

“Nobody else. You. You should demand more from yourself.”

With Alli now reportedly on the verge of joining Besiktas, those wise words from Mourinho seem so relevant for the Englishman.

He's managed just seven months at Goodison Park and now it seems the club are happy to allow him to move on.

For a player of his undoubted talent, who should now be entering the prime of his career, the whole situation seems a real shame.

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