Dele sent off just ten minutes into his first game in two years

Dele Alli’s return to first-team football ended after just ten minutes when he was shown a red card during his Como debut.

The former MK Dons man has not started a professional game in two years, through a mixture of injuries and a mental health break keeping him sidelined.

Since leaving Milton Keynes in 2015, he established himself as a Tottenham Hotspur regular in the Premier League, picked up 37 England caps and played in the Champions League final. But falling out of favour in north London, he moved to Everton where he made just 13 appearances, with a loan at Besiktas ending in injury.

After leaving Goodison Park last summer when his contract expired, he signed for Italian side Como, led by former Arsenal, Barcelona and Chelsea midfielder Cesc Fabregas, in Serie A.

Making his debut against AC Milan at the San Siro on Saturday, Dele came off the bench with Como chasing the game 2-1 with nine minutes to go. But as former Chelsea man Ruben Loftus-Cheek looked to counterattack, Dele tripped his former England team-mate in what looked a fairly innocuous challenge to earn him a yellow card, only for VAR to upgrade the decision to a red card.

Posting on social media afterwards, Dele shared the text messages he shared with Loftus-Cheek after the game, and said: “I was always going to announce my return in some way after these past 2 years, would rather it had been with a goal but feels good to be back."

Fabregas, who was also sent off from the sidelines after Dele’s red card, was critical of of the 28-year-old in the aftermath, saying: “It was at that moment when Milan went 2-1 up and Sergi Roberto was meant to come on, but I’d prefer to give him another two weeks to train so he can be ready to start against Empoli.

“Dele Alli is a player who can score goals, he perhaps didn’t deserve this opportunity because he has only been working with us for two weeks and has a lot to improve.

“It is a grave mistake, one that we should not see from a player of his experience. It was a clear red card, there’s nothing to be said about that, he left the team down to 10 men during a crucial moment when we were pushing for 2-2.

“That is the most negative thing about this evening, but we keep going.”