Michael Regan/Getty
Tottenham midfielder Dele Alli scored two goals on Monday to help his team cruise past Stoke, 4-0, and close in on Leicester City at the top of the English Premier League table.
But midway through the second half, Alli also missed one of the easiest tap-in goals you’ll ever see. After a Harry Kane through-ball freed him behind the Stoke back line, Alli beat Stoke’s keeper Shay Given and found himself facing a wide open net. A simple pass, the type even your least soccer-minded friend could complete, would have given Spurs the 3-0 advantage.
Instead, Alli rushed it, flubbed the shot, missed the net entirely, and collapsed onto the ground in shame.
Dele Alli’s miss is all-time bad, Mauricio Pochettino’s reaction to the miss is all-time excellent. pic.twitter.com/XMzUn3TxEJ
— Faizal Khamisa (@SNFaizalKhamisa) April 18, 2016
Here’s an excellent photograph from Getty, capturing the moment just after he missed the easiest goal of the year:
Michael Regan/Getty
Mauricio Pochettino’s, Tottenham’s manager, also fell to the ground as a result of the hilariously poor attempt.
via EPL
In Alli’s defense, a Stoke defender appears to be fast approaching the goal right as he shot the ball and might have been able to clear the ball off the line depending on Alli’s placement. That defender’s presence likely explains why Alli opted for such a sharp angle at the near post, and failed. But still.
Luckily, Alli made up for the miss with his second goal of the match in the 82nd minute.
More importantly, the 4-0 win moves Tottenham closer to underdogs Leicester City. Leicester now lead by five points with only four matches remaining on the season. As the title race heats up, Alli can ill afford to miss many more chances like this.