All Premier League clubs should keep tabs on Dele Alli, says Watford man
Monday 22 September 2014 17:02, UK
skysports.com will be getting inside the minds of the players this season.
Watford midfielder Keith Andrews reflects on the weekend draw with Bournemouth and discusses the flying form of Middlesbrough in the Championship.
He also discusses the rise of MK Dons starlet Dele Alli and tops him as a future Premier League star
On Saturday we faced a Bournemouth side that I have a lot of admiration for.
Having played them twice last season while at Brighton and being slightly fortunate to come away with honours even on both occasions, I knew this game would be a tough one for us in front of the Sky cameras.
It certainly proved that way as we came off second best to them, so we were delighted to hear the final whistle go and gain a valuable point against a very well-organised side, both in and out of possession.
He undoubtedly has an affinity with Bournemouth that goes back to his playing days, as 271 of his 273 professional games were with the Cherries.
Eddie Howe has done a superb job since his return to manage the Cherries after his stint at Turf Moor.
On the subject of Turf Moor, I actually think the job he did at Burnley was slightly underestimated as a lot of the players we are now seeing playing Premier League for Sean Dyche's side were brought to the club by Eddie, so he clearly has an eye for a player with potential.
He undoubtedly has an affinity with Bournemouth that goes back to his playing days, as 271 of his 273 professional games were with the Cherries.
After guiding them to promotion from League One just over a year ago, he has got this side more than holding their own at Championship level with the nucleus of the side that gained promotion.
They lost their main goal threat from last season when Lewis Grabban joined Norwich City for £2million but they quickly replaced him with a similar type of player in Callum Wilson from Coventry for half the fee. They have also brought in some quality players like Dan Gosling, Andrew Surman and Artur Boruc.
They are currently 15th in the league table but if they continue to play the way they did against us on Saturday then it's only a matter of time before they climb the league and challenge the top six.
Middlesbrough have been the biggest movers this week with nine points in the space of eight days propelling them into fifth place in the league.
After a slow start to the campaign that probably didn't see them collect as many points as their performances deserved, Aitor Karanka's side have now kicked into gear and will undoubtedly be a force this season.
Their talisman so far has been their captain Grant Leadbitter, who I played with at Ipswich a few seasons ago.
He's technically a very good player with a good engine and although he always had an eye for a goal, he has been given more licence to get forward this season and his seven goals from nine appearances is a ridiculous tally for a midfielder.
He is a huge threat from set pieces and has a thunderous strike from distance, which he showed yet again on Saturday as he scored the first against Brentford from circa 30 yards.
Another player who I have been very impressed with is Kike, who arrived from Murcia in the summer with an impressive record of a goal every two games.
He has continued that goalscoring record as he has settled like snow at the Riverside and scored five goals in his first 10 games and three in his last four so he has already proved a good acquisition.
This was the result of the weekend for me as Brentford are a difficult side to play against as they work their socks off for each other in a system that suits their personnel down to the ground.
I know Mark Warburton said they didn't reach their usual standards on Saturday but Boro were very impressive and probably would have beaten most sides in the division with that display.
We say it all the time about the inconsistency of the Championship and how anybody can beat anybody but it's so true.
Both Forest and Norwich gave the chasing pack a chance to make up ground on them by drawing with Millwall and Birmingham respectively.
Norwich have shown great character and resolve to come back from two goals down two weekends on the bounce but they will want to stop giving themselves an uphill task in the first place.
They were my tip at the start of the season and I still think they are the side to beat as they kept hold of the majority of the squad from last season and also added some quality players.
After our early kick off on Saturday lunch time I drove the few junctions up the M1 to watch my old side MK Dons thrash Crewe 6-1. They have had a superb start to the season and are playing some majestic football with pace, technical ability and flair throughout the side.
The player who is getting all the plaudits is Dele Alli and after Saturday's man-of-the-match performance I can see exactly why.
At just 18 years of age he is dominating games in such a mature manner with the help of Darren Potter beside him in the middle of the park.
He's physically strong and puts his foot in when needed, has elegant composure, and is a threat aerially, as he showed for his second goal on Saturday.
He is clearly loving life at stadium:mk as he has just signed a new deal to fend off suitors, for the time being at least.
I'm sure that there are scouts watching him regularly from Premier League clubs and if I was them I would be snapping him up sharpish as I think he will go to the top if he has the right people around him to keep him grounded.
MK are now sitting second in the table and I sincerely hope this is their season to gain promotion to the Championship as everyone at the club deserves it.
