Eric Dier

[Bulletspur]

ah, there it is, the old "if you don't agree with my opinion you're blind".

Sure he hasn't done much to stand out but he does the little things every match. Positioning, blocks, tackles, all while keeping the ball moving and tracking back. He doesn't have a glamorous role, but we just held United without a goal at Old Trafford so he's doing something right.

Dembele to be mostly credited. Dier was also over ran against Fulham until Dembele came on and rescued the situation. Dier is just a very average midfield player. Bar probably Arsenal, which other of the other top 6 would he be first choice? Not Liverpool Not Manu, Not Chelsea and def not Man City. I even said that he should not even be in the England squad for the WC, where he was subsequently found wanting. In my humble opinion, if we were to rely solely on Dier we will struggle. I just do not rate him (in midfield) , but most on here do for what ever reason.

 

[allpaths]

I dont think it is a silly comparison. With Carrick loads of people questioned what he added to the side up until the point he signed for utd and then people realised what he did offer when he wasnt there.

I'm not for a minute suggesting Dier is of the same ability but he is a player that read the game everso well and seems to take a fair bit of stick. Whether that is justified or not I havent watched him close enough to say

On the ball Dier and Carrick are nothing alike. Carrick dictated games from a deep position, where Dier for the most part keeps it nice and simple.
Dier hasn't been as dreadful as people make him out to be, but at our current level his blandish average performances stick as an area for improvement in the squad.

 

[Giovanni]

I just cant see poch ever sitting him out tbh even if wanyama gets fit and performs how we know he can.
His lack of mobility frightens me and i dredd to play liverpool and city with him at cm as it leaves too much work for dembele in there.

 

[GutBucket]

He isn't bad but Wanyama when he was fully fit was much better than him IMO and contender for MotM quite often.

 

[dtxspurs]

He isn't bad but Wanyama when he was fully fit was much better than him IMO and contender for MotM quite often.

We haven't seen Wanyama play like that for over a year now.

 

[Primativ]

Well they never have so I don't understand what your point is. As someone posted above he had been linked with Bayern and ManU in the past.

Come on...the Bayern link was tenuous at best and being wanted by United nowadays does not mean you are a great player. Their recent record in player recruitment is shocking.

 

[synththfc]

Although I remain unconvinced, I think we'd see him perform better if he was used in a CM3 anchoring role where he could just stick to his position more without having to do much chasing about and performing in tighter spaces. In a 2 man pairing you have to be dynamic and he just isn't. That's not his fault, he clearly always gives his all and his attitude is great, it's just not what he's naturally capable of.

As I said, if he has to play midfield then the best use of him is to provide an insurance policy for our full backs by dropping into defence when they go forward. Ask him to press and you're in trouble when he inevitably gets turned.

In front of a back 3 is even more of a no no than in a double pivot because then he can't even drop between the centre backs in possession.

Hate to use a Chelsea reference but what's even more baffling is that as a centre back Dier is more of a Carvalho than a John Terry in that he's better at sweeping things up rather than being a commanding presence. Put him in midfield and you negate that real strength of his to cover long balls played over or through our high line. His straight line speed is very fast which is good for a CB, but in midfield it's pretty redundant and you often need to be more agile in short bursts and especially very comfortable on the ball at tempo. He's neither of those really.

He's been playing in this position all season and I'd argue he's looked even worse

 

[dtxspurs]

Come on...the Bayern link was tenuous at best and being wanted by United nowadays does not mean you are a great player. Their recent record in player recruitment is shocking.

As has ours the past 3 summers. Guess if we are linked to a player they aren't great either?

 

[Shadydan]

The people who use the fact that he wouldn't get into any of our rival's midfield realise that he's played the majority of time in that position for a team who's finished 3rd, 2nd and 3rd in the last 3 seasons?

Such a ridiculous argument.

 

[Jimmypearce7]

He is a great player and vital part of the team. He creates a wall in front of the defence. He is there, in the right place, stopping the other team going forward. Half the time he may not touch the ball but he forces them backwards or sideways, a critical role.

 

[Bulletspur]

The people who use the fact that he wouldn't get into any of our rival's midfield realise that he's played the majority of time in that position for a team who's finished 3rd, 2nd and 3rd in the last 3 seasons?



Such a ridiculous argument.

Is it? If we had someone better we would probably have finished 2nd, 1st and 2nd in the last 3 seasons.

 

[Shadydan]

Is it? If we had someone better we would probably have finished 2nd, 1st and 2nd in the last 3 seasons.

Stop speaking bollocks.

 

[fortworthspur]

thought his first half last night was the worst Id seen him play. Other than that Ive got no criticisms.

 

[Makkaveli101]

I think Dier worked well when he would slot back into defence as a third CB as soon we lost possession. That doesn't seem to happen as much now. He always seems a little further up the pitch. My memory is too hazy to recall for sure...but were we playing Dier and Wanyama that season? Or was Dier playing alongside a more mobile and box to box Dembele, and would just slot right back in to defence if needed? I remember four at the back quickly becoming five? Don't seem to see many instances of this, these days?

 

[Shadydan]

I think Dier worked well when he would slot back into defence as a third CB as soon we lost possession. That doesn't seem to happen as much now. He always seems a little further up the pitch. My memory is too hazy to recall for sure...but were we playing Dier and Wanyama that season? Or was Dier playing alongside a more mobile and box to box Dembele, and would just slot right back in to defence if needed? I remember four at the back quickly becoming five? Don't seem to see many instances of this, these days?

Last night he was slotting into a back 5 whenever Utd had the ball on the wings particularly in the 2nd half last night presumably to deal with the arieal threat of Fellaini.

 

[THX2208]

Did Carrick divide opinion? I must of missed that.
Pure class.

I loved Carrick and was gutted when he walked out to join Man Utd. Thank God the infrastructure of the Football Club has changed so much for the better. ??

 

[bomberH]

I’m a Dier fan, though I don’t think he’s particularly progressed over the last couple of years. The season where he should’ve been arrested for attempted murder against the entire Chelsea team, he was without doubt my favourite player. His hunger, no nonsense attitude, calmness on the ball, strength etc were all top notch. If you’d asked me back then, I’d have said he’d be the best CM in the PL by now.

He hasn’t quite gone on to be the player I thought he might be but I still really like him and I’m happy to see him in the team. Poch has started him in almost every single game he could have in a time when we’re winning so many of our games and are so hard to beat, so he’s doing something right.

My concerns are his pace (he gets turned far too easily at times) and he seems to be a little more lethargic than others, maybe because he runs himself ragged I don’t know. Pace isn’t always necessary for a CM if you’re Carrick but I don’t think he reads the game as well as Carrick. On the plus side, I think he’s a leader on the pitch and barks orders like a leader should, he obviously gets on brilliantly with his team mates, he can see a decent through ball at times, he chips in with a goal or two, he shields the back 4/5 well and he isn’t scared to go in for a crunching challenge. That said, I can’t help think he’s slightly regressed from 2 seasons ago. But as I said, more than happy to have him in the team and will always love him for the way he showed absolutely no respect to the Chelsea players in that match. It was the match that completely ended our ‘soft touch’ tag. I don’t think we’d have caught up with Leicester anyway so I just enjoy that match for what it was - a fucking sensational battle led by Dier and Lamela!

 

[TropicalYid]

Some of you guys are way to critical of Dier. He been a vital part of our team and the progress made the last years.
Some over here say he wouldnt get in to any other top team, bar arsenal. But lets reverse the question. What player from the other top teams would walk right in to our team and take Diers place?
Kante i agree, but who else?

 

[DCSPUR]

Some of you guys are way to critical of Dier. He been a vital part of our team and the progress made the last years.
Some over here say he wouldnt get in to any other top team, bar arsenal. But lets reverse the question. What player from the other top teams would walk right in to our team and take Diers place?
Kante i agree, but who else?

lot of fans want to moan for the sake of it....bit silly, our best manager since Bill Nic has him as a constant first team player, Maureen was tapping him up and yet somehow he isn't good enough. People are daft.

 

[glospur]

I was speaking to a pal of mine who's an ex-Leeds Utd (fringe) player this afternoon who said Dier really impressed him last night. He said he's one of those players who reads the game so intelligently that his positioning makes it difficult for the opposition to make the attacking moves they want to, which is why they so often end up taking snap-shots that they rarely score from. He reckons he was the main reason why Utd had a good number of shots but very few clear-cut scoring opportunities that you can really say they should have scored from.

I'd have to watch the whole game again to see if I agree with him, but I always respect his opinion. He's one of the least biased observers I've ever spoken to.

I do think Dier is under-appreciated, both for Spurs and England.

Yep. It's clear that people who are/have been involved in football and actually have more than a hilariously superficial understanding of the game recognise just how important he is and the role that he plays.

Personally, I'll just continue to enjoy watching one of the greatest Tottenham managers in a long time continue to pick him and rate him highly to the 'critics' chagrin, while also continue to watch said critics prove their understanding as limited every time they post about him and fail to understand why he's so important.