With transfer rumours lingering around another of our talented young players, Fred Kavanagh pens his thoughts on Eric Dier and what he means to Spurs.
Eric Dier Loves Me
With only two weeks until the curtain is raised once more on England’s top flight, Spurs find themselves precariously looking at the new season with no new signings.
It’s something along those lines that rival fans will throw at us. New faces equates to level of ambition and so on. It’s what keeps the average fan on the edge of their seat during the tedious summer months. Either that or test cricket.
Lest we forget we’ve been burnt before with this track of thought. Cast your mind back to 2013 when we had seven new arrivals in North London. Day after day the dulcet tones of Jim White would send us into euphoria over the news of more names (there’s a thought). Forget the league position nine months later, we ended that season with Tim f**king Sherwood.
We’ve come along way since then thank goodness. Without stating the obvious it’s no coincidence that Pochettino has been with us since that turbulent year and in terms of our transfer business we’ve witnessed a shift from trigger happy, marquee signings to nurturing the young talent across our academy. So why would we change now? The strategy of regroup and retain feels like a better fit for what we have in this moment of time; a starting XI that’s difficult to improve on and a new stadium to move into on the horizon.
[linequote]We’ve witnessed a shift from trigger happy, marquee signings to nurturing the young talent across our academy[/linequote]
Enter Eric Dier, the latest subject in an on going transfer saga after the departed Kyle Walker. Despite the difficulties of gauging whether these sort of rumours are founded on anything, this lingering story has the feel of something a little more substantial then a column filler. Yet there’s little need for panic. Partly because of where Dier is in his career and also how the Walker transfer played itself out.
To break it down in layman’s terms; Walker wanted out for one reason or another; we identified that our replacement was within our squad in the form of Kieran Tripper; the price was set with the knowledge that a bidding war was unlikely between various clubs; a bit of back and forth and vuala! Nice to have known you and so on.
There was no holding to ransom as we’ve seen before. No sulking on the bench throughout August. Fortunately for both parties he was deemed replaceable so we were as meticulous and greedy as we needed to be.
Eric Dier is different. From what we’ve seen there will be no bidding war and no back and forth. The silence from our camp insinuates that he’s a Tottenham player and cutting his journey short isn’t worth the sums of being money being banded around. We have a young talent neatly knitted into our playing style. No need to go overboard, it just isn’t happening.
But furthermore he’s been with the club from the start of the Pochettino revolution. For me he has embodied the dogged transformation that all started with his last minute winner at Upton Park on his debut. In that season it seemed his passion outweighed his talent and that’s exactly what you want to see from a young man entering elite football however the same cannot be said now. I don’t think anyone can say he’s the finished article yet but he wears the shirt with pride, he’s invested in our project and knows he can play a huge part in the future success of this club.
[linequote]For me he has embodied the dogged transformation that all started with his last minute winner at Upton Park on his debut[/linequote]
It’s not as if the party would be over if we were to cash in on him this summer. Forget the money, we have fantastic players both in central defence and in the middle of the park to fill in if this were to happen. But it’s what he represents that’s worth so much more. He’s been through the moments of adulation over the last few seasons with us, along with the heartache of just missing out. He deserves to see the glory of the cups at White Hart Lane. He can make it happen with the rest of this team. Regroup and retain.
I could stomach Walker leaving for the riches of Manchester City. This man would be different. Although the rumours are unlikely to go away anytime soon, it isn’t a case of digging the heels in and having to answer every question thrown at you. The calm and steady response is a reflection of the mood within the club.
The secret has been out for while and this summer has confirmed it. We have something special here at Tottenham, it’s why other clubs want in on it. Let them play catch up by splashing the cash. We don’t have to this time.
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3 Comments
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26/07/2017 @ 2:18 pm
For me, the situation isn’t about what we would lose, but more what a direct rival would gain. As a defensive midfielder Dier is pure class, however he is neither irreplaceable or guaranteed first pick at Spurs. In terms of a centre half, I feel he gets away with it a bit, being part of a 3; and he is, in my humble opinion, way, way short of being a top class centre half; and if I were Poch, I’d defo be looking to bring in another, assuming Wimmer isn’t going to get a decent crack. As a defensive midfielder, I believe Dier would improve Man Utd’s options massively, which is the sole reason, IMO, that we should not, or will not sell him. COYS!
26/07/2017 @ 3:57 pm
A good article but only time will tell the veracity of it. Spurs can just about get away with explaining Walker away on their terms – but another sale of a member deemed a core part of the project would erode the confidence. For too long now we have built only to disassemble. That has to stop right here and now!
26/07/2017 @ 2:38 pm
The irreplacibility of Dier isn’t in his extreme talent at any particular position, it’s his ability to play well – though not spectacularly – in a variety of them. He gives this team the ability to reshape at any given minute, even fluidly through a match. That is something no other player in our team can do.
Of course, we also don’t want to strengthen those hideous ones. But the point is, Poch rates him very highly for a reason. Finally, centre halves only really start to find their feet from 25+. It takes a lot of intelligence and experience to play the position immaculately. Alderweireld and Vertonghen I can assure you were no masterpieces at Diet’s age.