Everton midfielder, Dele Alli, has revealed how he was molested at the age of six by a friend of his alcoholic mum.
He made this revelation during an interview with Manchester United legend Gary Neville for an episode of The Overlap where he opened up about his struggles.
When asked about his struggles and how they might be connected with his childhood, Alli said,”So, at six, I was molested by my mum’s friend, who was at the house a lot. My mum was an alcoholic, and that happened at six. I was sent to Africa to learn discipline, and then I was sent back.”
“At seven, I started smoking, eight I started dealing drugs. An older person told me that they wouldn’t stop a kid on a bike, so I rode around with my football, and then underneath I’d have the drugs, that was eight.
“Eleven, I was hung off a bridge by a guy from the next estate, a man.
“Twelve, I was adopted and from then, it was like I was adopted by an amazing family like I said, I couldn’t have asked for better people to do what they’d done for me. If God created people, it was them.”
Alli went on to say that rehab had made him more understanding of his mum’s situation.
“I had no rules, I grew up without any rules. Like I said, my mum she drank a lot and I don’t blame her at all for what happened.
“Me going into rehab now has helped me understand her – it was all she knew. Like, even when she let me go and I got adopted, she knew and I knew that it was what was needed to even have a chance of living the life I wanted to live and be successful. And because it was only going one way if I stayed there.”
