Dele Alli has addressed the repeated accusations that he is diving, saying that he does not want "to be labelled as a cheat" and hopes to learn from each incident.
Alli, the Tottenham Hotspur midfielder, has been booked three times for simulation -- more than any other Premier League player since his debut for the club in summer 2015.
"Nobody wants to be labelled as a cheat," Alli told reporters. "It's an opinion and everyone has a different opinion. I get into the box a lot and round the box, and I'm an attacking player and I get fouled a lot."
The most recent accusations came in Spurs' 1-0 victory against Crystal Palace last month, when he went to the ground in a tussle with Patrick van Aanholt and then later tumbled under a challenge from goalkeeper Wayne Hennessey.
"There are some that look bad," Alli said. "It's different when you are in the action. The one at Crystal Palace, that's the one I saw a lot of reaction to. I was running through and, at the time, all was going through my head was that I didn't want to step on the keeper. But when you watch it back and people start saying things, it can look a lot different.
"That's why I think it's important that players, not just about diving, about other stuff too, that you don't get too involved in it and just focus on what you are doing and listen to the opinions of the people you trust."
John Patrick Fletcher/Action Plus via Getty Images
The incident involving Hennessey drew criticism from Alan Shearer and Gary Lineker, both of whom slammed Alli for diving during the game.
"I think we live in a world now where everyone has a chance to have an opinion and with social media, everyone's opinion can be seen and it's important that I don't get drawn into that, don't look at it, don't read it or start to believe what people say about me," Alli said.
The midfielder has scored 10 goals in all competitions this season after breaking through with 22 goals for Spurs in 2016-17.
"I am 21 and you do some dumb things sometimes, and it's all part of learning and improving, and turning into a good person and that's what I want to achieve," he said.
Source: espn.co.uk