Dele Alli Appears to Give Referee Middle Finger, Says It's a Joke with Kyle Walker
Dele Alli has landed himself in trouble after raising a middle finger during England's 2-1 World Cup qualifying win over Slovakia on Monday night.
The gesture came after the Three Lions had completed their turnaround from a goal behind, the Tottenham midfielder aiming the gesture across the field - with some suggesting that referee Clément Turpin was the target of his ire.
It came after a strong challenge on Alli from Martin Skrtel which did not draw a foul, but Alli and manager Gareth Southgate insisted after the match that the 21-year-old was actually gesturing to former Spurs teammate Kyle Walker.
Speaking after the match, Southgate said: "I've not seen it but I've been made aware of it. Kyle and Dele were mucking about, and Dele's made a gesture towards Kyle. I don't know what the angle of the pitch is. The pair of them have a strange way of communicating, but that's what they've said when it's been raised."
Alli repeated the defence on Twitter later on Monday night, saying: "Just to clarify, the gesture tonight was a joke between me and my good friend Kyle Walker! Apologies for any offence caused! Great win 2nite".
If the incident is not mentioned in the referee's official match report, Alli could be punished retrospectively with anything up to a three-game ban if his actions are deemed to constitute misconduct.
