Rochdale manager Keith Hill had no problem with Dele Alli penalty in FA Cup draw, even if he dived

In the 88th minute, with the score tied at one, Dele Alli was taken down by Harrison McGahey’s challenge. Several Rochdale players complained that he had gone down too easily.

Even though Dele Alli dove to win it, Keith Hill, the manager of Rochdale, insisted he was fine with the late penalty given against his team in their thrilling FA Cup draw against Tottenham Hotspur.

In the 88th minute, with the score tied at one, Alli was taken down by Harrison McGahey’s challenge. Several Rochdale players expressed their displeasure, claiming that Alli had gone down too easily.

Harry Kane’s penalty kick goal seconds later looked to have sealed Tottenham’s quarterfinal spot, but Steve Davies’ stoppage-time level guaranteed Rochdale a well-earned replay at Wembley.

Hill held his post-match press conference before having a chance to see a replay of the Alli incident, but refused to criticise the player and instead claimed he would be happy to see the England international do the same at next summer’s World Cup.

It seems like he was searching for it, but why not? I don’t hold it against a player if they believe there is a chance to succeed, the Rochdale boss stated.

“I don’t find it problematic, and I don’t hold it against him. It doesn’t matter who does it—him, Harry Kane, or Ian Henderson, who opens the scoring for Rochdale. I will undoubtedly be rooting for him if he does so well for England during the World Cup this summer.

Although Hill acknowledged that his team will probably lose the replay, he still believes that the financial benefit of going to Wembley will be substantial. The estimated £500,000 in earnings from Sunday’s match were used by the club to convey

“That was a heavy investment for us,” he said. “Hopefully the money we make will support the club for the next two or three years. That will also come from player sales as well and we’ve got players who can play in the Championship or potentially the Premier League. We will cut our cloth accordingly and we won’t be in debt.