Dele Alli reveals sexual abuse, addiction and struggle with mental health

Dele Alli has revealed he was sexually abused at the age of six and was dealing drugs by the time he was just eight years old.

In an emotional interview, the Everton midfielder fought back tears as he laid bare his difficult upbringing before he was adopted by the Hickford family.

Alli also told Gary Neville in The Overlap podcast, in partnership with Sky Bet, that he has battled a sleeping pill addiction and only came out of rehab last month as he struggled with his mental health.

I’m struggling to find the words to put with this post but please watch my most recent interview with Dele. It’s the most emotional, difficult yet inspirational conversation I’ve ever had in my life. Watch the interview on @wearetheoverlap here https://t.co/60d4IZwQmR pic.twitter.com/0cZowJGW77

— Gary Neville (@GNev2) July 13, 2023

The England international, who spent last season on loan at Besiktas, said: “When I came back from Turkey, I came in and I found out that I need an operation and I was in a bad place mentally.

“I decided to go to like a modern-day rehab facility for mental health. They deal with like addiction, mental health, and trauma because it was something that I felt like it was time for.

“I think with things like that, you can’t be told to go there. I think you have to know, and you have to make the decision yourself, otherwise it’s not going to work.”

Alli said that he had been able to mask his difficulties.

“To be honest, I was caught in a bad cycle. I was relying on things that were doing me harm and, yeah, I think I was waking up every day and I was winning the fight, you know, going into training, smiling, showing that I was happy,” he said.

“But inside, I was definitely losing the battle and it was time for me to change