For nearly a decade we have all been trying – to varying degrees – to find out just how good Eric Dier is. Since his Tottenham debut in August 2014, through a series of elite managers across club and country, he scored that penalty in 2018, committed himself to the fight, stormed into the stands to defend his brother, tweeted against Brexit and now an unlikely signed the result. There was always a question mark about his transfer to Bayern Munich.
I’m not sure there’s a football player I want to be more successful with, more eager to prove the doubters wrong. As someone who is often accused of stealing a living, perhaps this is my natural empathy embodied in football. But there he is, my favorite Eric since Bananaman.
Relating to: Eric Dier to seal £3.5m move to Bayern Munich as Spurs make defensive changes
In the world of binary social media, he’s either a jerk or a top notch. In the real world, where all professional footballers are pretty good, the answer is probably just a rung or two, a meter or two below the elite. But Pochettino, Hodgson, Southgate, Mourinho, Conte and now Tuchel still wanted him.
An irritated Ange Postecoglou looked a bit harsh when she asked if Spurs could afford to sell Dier this window, despite all their injury problems, before she took a moment and replied: “Yes.” But refreshingly, this is Postecoglou’s method. Dier probably appreciates honesty. It’s not hard to see that it’s time to move on when Emerson Royal is selected ahead of you at centre-back. Although Dier has been at the center of the outstanding senior table at home to Chelsea this season, he is not a top man.
Any Spurs player’s decade often conjures up images of near-title challenges, the Champions League final in Madrid, of someone looking a bit miffed after conceding a goal that was no one’s fault but also seemed entirely avoidable (see also Hugo Lloris, January) Vertonghen, names you know). But Dier’s career is one of moments.
Maybe it’s a matter of looking at football through the lens of a midlife crisis, but it’s almost unthinkable that his debut on the opening day of the 2014-15 season was nine and a half years ago. He was in the back four at Upton Park alongside Kyle Naughton, Younes Kaboul and Danny Rose. With injury time 0-0, both sides trailing by 10 men, Harry Kane, who came on in the 83rd minute to replace the ineffective Emmanuel Adebayor, slides the ball towards a fresh-faced Dier.
Guy Demel plays offside, takes a touch past Adrián and slides the ball towards goal. Andros Townsend celebrates with Kane before jumping on his back. Lewis Holtby runs to congratulate him. And from that moment on, most weeks of my life were spent thinking about Eric Dier, at least to some small degree.
Understands. He scored England’s first winning penalty in the men’s World Cup penalty shoot-out. Perhaps it’s indicative of how Dier is viewed that you can sense a collective “really” across the country. He rose to his feet to take the decisive spot-kick. He was never universally loved in an England shirt, but he was never the butt of the joke, never Phil Jones, never Harry Maguire.
The BBC’s World Cup montages are worth the license fee alone, and the one with Croatia before the 2018 semi-final combined the penalty heartache of a lifetime with the last 16 shootout against Colombia. Characteristically, Dier is the best supporting actor here, alongside star Jordan Pickford. But still, what a moment. Not exactly a clean strike, joining the celebration rather than leading it, but there he is, a history maker.
Perhaps his cleanest strike for England was a tackle on Sergio Ramos in the 3-2 win in Spain. Ten minutes into the game, he ran 20 yards and attacked Ramos in the Spanish penalty area. “I want Eric Dier’s fight against Sergio Ramos to be played at my funeral,” tweeted David Squires. If Postecoglou had been subjected to such intense pressure, perhaps things would have been different.
Has there ever been a player who burst into the crowd, stood up to a fan and received universal support? After Norwich beat Spurs at home on penalties in the FA Cup, Dier climbed onto the seats with his shoes on to defend his brother (not easy to do). Although it is not recommended, it is an admirable behavior.
And he’s “not that kind of player”; Apart from football, he is an urban football player. In 2019, he tweeted in favor of #popularvote. “I don’t regret anything,” he told the Daily Mail. “I am strongly against this [Brexit] and time shows that [it’s wrong for the country].”
Dier argued that this is exactly our stereotypical view of the dressing room and that the conversations go beyond Dubai, cars and tattoos. A mutual friend sent me a podcast with Dier as a guest about the garden he grew in lockdown. There he is, a man who sounds normal despite having a walled garden and an orchard, talking about planting trees and how to bend over with your legs while weeding. Interesting, relevant and understated.
Football is too cruel to care how good of a person you are, but it still matters, and listening to Dele Alli talk about the importance of his friendship with Dier and how much support he has given the Everton midfielder during his well-publicised struggles gives you an idea. idea about his kindness.
Maybe kindness deserves success. Dier seems like a man of great character, a little bit Brendan-Rodgers. The word complement is overused, but it also applies to Dier. The past few months at Spurs must have been very difficult. His arrival at Allianz may surprise many people, but there won’t be a Spurs fan who doesn’t wish him well. If he has another memory, and this time it involves lifting a trophy, it will be a testament to him.