I couldn't disagree more, he isnt as good as he thinks he is at the moment, he may become as good as he wants to be but I cant see that happening with us. I wouldn't be surprised if we do buy him back and try to loan him and then sell him on
For a player of his supposed quality he should be doing better but he has time, he often tries to put in the right area in terms of shooting but his technique is just not good enough yet so he looks like a total tit when he shoots and there is a guy free near him
England's Lisbon Lion: Eric Dier is unknown over here but he's following in footsteps of Ronaldo... and has even been compared to Beckenbauer
By Mike Dickson
PUBLISHED: 22:30 GMT, 18 March 2013 | UPDATED: 11:39 GMT, 19 March 2013
Top dog: Eric Dier and his pet Labrador Sisco
He is an English player just turned 19 and his manager has described him as a potential Franz Beckenbauer, but only the football cognoscenti may have heard of Eric Dier.
The reason is that Dier plies his trade not in the land of his birth but in Portugal, where he broke into the Sporting Lisbon first team at 18.
His progress was such that his veteran boss, Jesualdo Ferreira, has mentioned him in the same breath as the German master.
This week, the Sporting midfielder-cum-centre back makes a rare trip back to the UK, in the squad for the England Under 19s against Turkey at Buck's Head in Telford, a slightly less glamorous venue than he is used to.
Home for him is the pictureseque fishing town of Alcochete, across the water from the Portuguese capital, where his local restaurant is adorned with pictures of Cristiano Ronaldo.
Ronaldo used to be a regular at the Maritimo cafe and is still an occasional visitor to the dining spot favoured by those who train at Sporting's famed academy.
Dier has an interesting sporting pedigree. His maternal grandfather was Ted Croker, former chief of the FA, who played for Charlton, as did his great uncle.
His father, Jeremy, was once a tennis player who appeared at Wimbledon in the 1980s and relocated to the Portuguese capital 10 years ago.
Little did the family know that, a decade on, one of the six children who went with him would become that extremely rare specimen - an Englishman at the beginning of his career playing in a foreign league, following the likes of Ronaldo, Luis Figo and Nani from the academy.
A strapping 6ft 2in, Dier made his debut in November and has made 14 appearances, including 90 minutes in the derby match against Benfica.
The key to his sudden elevation was an 18-month spell at Goodison Park that ended last summer. 'It sounds a bit of cliche but it may be a case of me going there as a boy and coming back as a man,' says Dier, sitting in the Maritimo accompanied by his black laborador Sisco, with whom he lives close by.
His journey towards the top of the professional game began soon after the family arrived in Lisbon, his mother working at the 2004 European Championship finals.
'My PE teacher used to scout for Sporting and, when I was nine, he recommended me for a trial. From there, I just went up through the age groups and was always kept on while others were dropping out.
'I suppose it was only when they offered me a contract at 14 and I enrolled in the academy school that I realised it might be quite serious.'
He quickly mixed in with a diverse group often different to his own middle-class background, including large numbers brought in from former colony Guinea-Bissau.
Having continually played at a level a year above himself, his progress stalled around 17. It was agreed time back in England would be beneficial, with Everton the destination through a contact.
A six-month stay turned into 18 as a regular in the youth team and reserves.
'I had become a bit spoiled or complacent at Sporting and I needed a kick up the backside, which is what Everton gave me. It was quite tough going to an unfamiliar place where I didn't know anyone at first,' says the impressively articulate Dier, who speaks Portuguese as naturally as he does English.
'Coaches like Alan Stubbs were quite hard on me but that helped a lot. It was the best thing that could have happened. It really hardened me up physically and mentally. The football was much faster, physical and more direct than here.'
He believes the education of a footballer in England must be different to what he has known - and not just in the way Sporting place greater emphasis on their young players pursuing academia.
'I know I did not play an 11-a-side match until I was 12; even beyond that, we tended to play smaller-sized matches on smaller pitches.
'I don't remember much chasing of the ball going on when I was a kid. We played a lot of five-a-side and seven-a-side - you played in all different positions and everyone learned to attack. Results didn't matter until much older and there weren't parents going mad if we lost or any inquests by coaches.
'To be honest, we didn't lose very often. The club are very proud of the academy and what it has done. We can't compete financially with some of the big European clubs so there is the knowledge that players have to be developed. When you're in the academy, names like Ronaldo and Figo are always on your mind.'
Dier did not expect things to happen so quickly after returning from Merseyside but was picked for the Sporting B team in Portugal's second tier and made his senior debut in November, laying on his team's goal with a pinpoint cross. His third game was the Benfica derby.
'I was determined to take my chance when it came along. The Benfica match was an amazing experience - flares were going off everywhere and you can tell the fans don't like each other.
'It went by in a blur. One thing I've found in the first team is the intensity of concentration required is much greater and that was very tiring at first, but I'm getting used to it.'
Dier has also tasted playing for a club in a slump and lying just below mid-table, with the manager changing as a result. His form and versatility - moving into midfield from centre back sparked Ferreira's Beckenbauer comparison - has been a rare shaft of light in a gloomy season for the Portuguese giants.
'There are maybe some parallels with Liverpool in where we are right now,' says Dier, with more rave reviews in Saturday's 2-1 win over Setubal.
'We're a big club. There's a bit of transitional phase going on before getting back to where we should be. I am looking at it as a valuable experience this early in my career.'
His path will, he hopes, one day lead him to the Premier League and full caps to add to those he has with the Under 19s, the FA having belatedly taken note of their one-time secretary's grandson.
'I've got three more seasons on my contract here and I'm happy,' says Dier.
'I'll always be English because of my parents, but I feel Portuguese as well. I've been told from a young age that your career's a marathon, not a sprint. I'm old enough to understand that now.'
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-2295399/Eric-Dier-English-player-shining-Sporting-Lisbon--INTERVIEW.html#ixzz2NzTGzaHt
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Eric,
That you from sunny SA?? If yes, then it was bad enough having Barry M over here!!
Not sure I'd agree with that. They could have walked away: we never forced them to pay what they did: DL does what he always does, expects other clubs to pay top dolloar for our first choice players - and I do support him on that (Carrick a similar example). What I DON'T agree with DL on is using that same technique for our second-string.
Cheers!!
Tony
