Former Premier League player Joey Barton believes Tottenham midfielder Dele Alli is struggling due to his agents battle.

Alli is the subject of interest from the world's biggest agents as his current representation deal runs down.

"I don't know what's going on with Dele [Alli] at the moment," Barton told talkSPORT.

“I like him a lot. I like his character – the story about him – but there's clearly something rumbling in the background.

“Whether it's in his personal life, I don't know what's going on with the agents, but there's something not right with him or his inner sanctum at the moment.

“The way he was performing last year and going about his business – is not the same this year.

“It could well be a young player developing but I don't think that is usually [the reason]. Usually if you get the momentum and the confidence he's had, you just keep striving forward.

“It'll be up to [Mauricio] Pochettino and Spurs to find out what that is and to get to the root of that pretty quickly.

“It's a young side and it's progressing. This mightn't be the year that they win the league – they mightn't win the league for a couple of years – but the fact we're having a conversation about Spurs potentially winning the league is a huge step forward for the club."