Dele Alli endured a nightmare return on his first competitive appearance in more than two years as he was sent off less than 10 minutes into his debut for Serie A side Como.

Former England star Alli, once a leading light at Tottenham Hotspur and a World Cup semi-finalist with Gareth Southgate’s England in 2018, has been trying to put his career back on track after being signed by Como manager Cesc Fàbregas before Christmas.

He was summoned from the bench in the 81st minute of Saturday’s 2-1 defeat at AC Milan, stepping out at the San Siro to end a wait that dates back to his last appearance on loan at Besiktas in February 2023.

But his comeback turned sour when he made a clumsy challenge on former England team-mate Ruben Loftus-Cheek at the start of added time. He was shown an initial yellow card by referee Matteo Marchetti but a VAR review saw the caution turned into a red.

Another of his former England colleagues, Milan full-back Kyle Walker, appeared to try to talk Marchetti into showing lenience but the decision was already made.

Dele will now face a ban, just a few minutes into his return to competitive football.

His indiscretion was met with disappointment by his manager, with Fàbregas questioning his decision to use the midfielder.

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

“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.”