Dele Alli has claimed football saved him from a life of gangs and being in with the wrong crowd.
He noted that when growing up, things could have been very different for him, and that things are now very different – all because of football.
The player also cautioned people who think they know him and his character, noting they don’t know him and that he takes nothing for granted.
He spoke with ES Magazine and said: “I got into the wrong crowd from an early age. Football was a great distraction from the path I was heading down.
“I’m very lucky to have met people who helped through the hardest of times and have helped me grow into the person I am today.