Dion Dublin has claimed that Tottenham’s Eric Dier ‘doesn’t have a defensive brain’, as he told Premier League Productions (18/04/22 at 12:10 pm).
The former striker was making reference to Dier’s mistake during Tottenham’s 1-0 defeat against Brighton on Saturday and how the Englishman has a ‘midfielder’s brain’, not one of a centre-back.
It was Leandro Trossard who jinxed past Dier inside the penalty area and then toe-poked the ball past Hugo Lloris to hand his side the points.
Overall, Antonio Conte’s side were just flat, from back to front, throughout the game and probably deserved to lose, as a result.
Dublin shared what Tottenham’s versatile defender did wrong and how a player like Lewis Dunk would have dealt with that situation better.
“Dier doesn’t have a defensive brain,” said Dublin. “He has a midfielder’s brain. That’s the way it is. He’s a midfield player, isn’t he?!
“Dunk, for instance, he just stands up and takes it wherever it needs to be taken. You take it in the face.
“As soon as you turn, that’s it. The goal is bigger. Then you can do whatever you want.
“If you stay big, then you can push right or you can push left. As soon as he puts his feet together, which is what he did, then he couldn’t do anything at all. It’s silly things you know as a defender, which come natural to you.”
Under Conte’s stewardship, Dier’s game has picked up and there have even been calls for him to return to the England set-up.
The likes of Marc Guehi, who is thriving at Crystal Palace, were selected instead of the Spurs 28-year-old, which is perhaps an indication that he might struggle to win back his place.
Luckily, he is playing for a manager that is known to eek out every bit of quality from the players that he works with.
At this moment in time, he is doing that with Dier, but next season will be the key one because if the north London club start well, along with Dier, then he might find himself returning to the national set-up.
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