Dele Alli seizes chance to impress as Spurs starlet seeks to follow in Euro footsteps of Harry Kane

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Dele Alli started second successive game and played the whole 90 minutes against Qarabag on Thursday night
The 19-year-old held his own in midfield and set up the first goal forSon Heung-Min in 3-1 victory

Published: 17:01 EST, 17 September 2015 | Updated: 05:46 EST, 18 September 2015

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The ball was threaded to Dele Alli, running on an angle at the edge of the six yard box. A perfectly-executed Cruyff turn left his marker for dead, comically sliding on his backside into no man's land.

Alli had the goal at his mercy but unselfishly squared it to Son Heung-Min as Tottenham Hotspur took a lead against Azerbaijan champions Qarabag which they would never relinquish.

The Europa League may be seen as the equivalent of a graveyard shift but this competition offers more than just shooting practice against European minnows. Alli knows that, and didn't disappoint at White Hart Lane.

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Dele Alli left his marker for dead before squaring the ball for Son Heung-Min to score the opening goal

DELE ALII THIS SEASON

Manchester United (a) - came on as a substitute after 77 mins

Stoke City (h) - unused substitute

Leicester City (a) - came on as a substitute after 65 mins

Everton (h) - came on as a substitute after 53 mins

Sunderland (a) - started, substituted after 67 mins

Qarabag (h) - started

Harry Kane did it last season, after all. The Tottenham striker used this tournament to become a regular under Mauricio Pochettino, moving ahead of Emmanuel Adebayor and Roberto Soldado in the pecking order by dominating against Limassol, Besiktas and Asteras Tripolis.

So, whose audition is it this year? Alli had lived the life of a substitute this season but was handed his first 90 minutes since joining from MK Dons for £5million against Qarabag.

He swept from right to left and held his own in a midfield determined to get physical with their Barclays Premier League counterparts.

Starlet Alli hopes to follow the route to success enjoyed last season by striker Harry Kane

Alli, supporting Son in attack, started having fun after just two minutes, picking the ball up in Qarabag's half and nutmegging his marker, but was reminded that the visitors had not made their 2,500-mile trip to north London for nothing.

Qarabag took the lead four minutes later through Richard Almeida's penalty and, suddenly, they weren't just making the numbers up in Group J.

Yet once Tottenham's nerves had settled following Son's straightforward equaliser from a poorly-marked corner, they went 2-1 up after 30 minutes, and this was all about Alli.

Alli knows that the Europa League offers the perfect stage and he didn't disappoint at White Hart Lane

A one-two with Son saw Alli destroy Qarabag captain Rashad Sadygov with a quick-thinking turn before the £22m signing from Bayer Leverkusen put Tottenham in the driving seat for the first time in this bruising contest.

There is no doubt Alli still has much to learn. At times he unnecessarily tried to beat a defender when a pass may have been the more sensible option but, at 19, time is on his side.

Alli could have scored Tottenham's third after the break when he tore through the Qarabag defence, only for Erik Lamela to snatch the shot from the England Under-21 international and strike the post.

Alli maybe only 19 but he held his own in midfield and squared up to Azerbaijan captain Rashad Sadygov

As Pochettino swapped Son for Kane with 20 minutes remaining, Alli's job remained the same. He supported the striker from behind, often unlocking an increasingly-vulnerable Qarabag back four.

Alli is determined to force his way into Pochettino's thinking this season and the Europa League has a history of giving players a chance to do that.

Against Qarabag, he did himself no harm, and the Tottenham starlet may need to get used to hearing his name chanted to the tune of the Hokey Cokey as it was all evening.