Tottenham Hotspur: Mauricio Pochettino Describes Spurs Star As a 'Wild Horse'

Tottenham Hotspur boss Mauricio Pochettino has described his tenacious midfielder Dele Alli as a "wild horse."

The 20-year-old was suspended for three games last season after punching Claudio Yacob, the West Bromwich midfielder, but Pochettino doesn't want to remove the fiery side of his game.

"He is a big talent but he was a bit wild," Pochettino said. "Now he is more domesticated. You can't lose that side—it might make him a special player.

"It is like when you have a wild horse and you need to put it in a box and domesticate it."

Alli has followed up last year's outstanding campaign with a fine start to the new Premier League season, scoring four times for club and country and helping Spurs to third in the table.

"There is nothing to say about Dele. I am more than happy with him, the effort in every game," Pochettino added.

"He plays a lot, he brings to the team many positive positive things and if every chance that he has he will score, maybe we are talking about a Marco van Basten or a Gabriel Batistuta, a striker."

Spurs travel to the south coast on Saturday to face Eddie Howe's Bournemouth in a lunchtime kick-off.