Dele Alli could have signed for Liverpool but Steven Gerrard having a nap may have scuppered the deal.

Alli was impressing at League One MK Dons and was capturing the attention of numerous high-profile clubs.

One of those clubs was Liverpool - the club Alli supported as a boy.

Gerrard was sleeping when Alli went to Liverpool

In 2014, Alli travelled to Merseyside and Liverpool's training ground ahead of a potential move.

However, he was unable to meet his idol as he was sleeping at the time.

“At the time when I was at MK there was contact with Liverpool before I signed for Tottenham, but that was before we’d even spoke to Tottenham,” Alli told Football Focus. “I think it was six months before.

“We went up there and I think they knew that Steven Gerrard was my hero, so they said he was going to come down to meet me, but when I got there he was asleep apparently.

“I think he had a game the next day though so I understand.”

It's unknown whether Gerrard sleeping was a deal-breaker, but it certainly wouldn't have done Liverpool's chances of signing Alli any harm whatsoever.

As we all know, Alli signed for Spurs for £5 million instead and initially flourished.

Rodgers on how close Liverpool were to signing Alli

Two years later, former Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers expained just how close the Reds were to signing the midfielder.

"We thought we had him at Liverpool," Rodgers told Goals on Sunday.

"The manager of MK Dons actually drove him down to us. They played a game on the Saturday and we were playing West Ham on the Sunday.

"We'd had contact with Dele, it was all above board, I was speaking with Karl Robinson and I spoke to Dele and his adoptive parents.

"Karl did really well with him and he came to me and said, 'I've got a really exciting player, I'd love to see him at Liverpool'.

"I spent a couple of hours in a hotel room with him and he wanted to come to Liverpool. It was all about getting the deal done with the club but unfortunately it never got done.

"On Saturday evening we thought it had got done but eventually he went to Tottenham, which was frustrating and disappointing. He's done really well there."

What's happened to Dele Alli?

After signing for Spurs as an 18-year-old, Alli looked set to fulfil his incredible talent. In his first two seasons, he scored 28 Premier League goals in 70 appearances. He won the PFA Young Player of the Year in those two seasons - and was named in the PFA Team of Year on both occasions.

He appeared to have the world at his feet.

Liverpool - and every other club - will have been regretting the fact they were unable to sign the wonderkid for such a modest fee.

However, following the sacking of Mauricio Pochettino and the arrival of Jose Mourinho at Tottenham, Alli's career started to unravel.

Injuries hampered his progress and, even when he was fit, Mourinho didn't fancy him.

Mourinho's chat with Dele Alli

In Amazon's 'All or Nothing' documentary, Mourinho called Alli 'lazy' before a one-on-one chat was shown in which the Portuguse manager said: "Maybe, inside, you are telling me to f*** off, but I have to tell you exactly what I see.

"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!

"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.

"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."

Despite Mourinho leaving the club and both Nuno Espirito Santo and Antonio Conte coming in at Spurs, Alli couldn't kickstart his career in north London. He was allowed to join Everton on a free transfer in January 2022.

But he struggled at Goodison Park too, being sent on loan to Besiktas for the 2022/23 campaign where he didn't play any matches after 26 February.

Alli opens up on mental health struggles

In an incredibly brave interview with Gary Neville, Alli opened up on his mental health struggles and revealed childhood trauma.

He explained how he was sexually abused when he was six, started dealing drugs at eight, was addicted to sleeping pills and recently spent six weeks in rehab following his spell at Besiktas.

“When I came back from Turkey I found out I needed an operation. I was in a bad place mentally and I decided to go to a modern day rehab facility for mental health," he said. "They deal with addiction, mental health, and trauma because it was something I felt like it was time for.

“You can’t be told to go there, I think you have to know, and you have to make the decision yourself, otherwise it’s not going to work and yeah, to be honest, I was caught in a bad cycle – you know. I was relying on things that were doing me harm and yeah, I think I was waking up every day and I was winning the fight, you know, going into training, smiling, showing that I was happy.

"But inside, I was definitely losing the battle and it was time for me to change it because when I got injured and they told me I needed surgery, I could feel the feelings I had when the cycle begins and I didn’t want it to happen anymore."