Tottenham repair guide: How Pochettino can fix each Spurs star
Eric Dier
As good as the England international was for Pochettino last season, he’s been just that bad for the manager this year. Whether deployed as a central defender or defensive midfielder, he’s struggled to turn in even average performances for Spurs on the campaign.
In fairness to Dier, toggling back and forth between two such different positions has surely made it difficult for him to find a rhythm. The first step to his recovery is to move him back to a consistent spot in the lineup.
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His best spot is clearly the defensive midfield at this point in his career. He may have started as a centre back, but his play in relief of Alderweireld has reminded us all that he’s much better served further up the pitch.
The only problem is that Dier will have a tough time cracking into that part of the lineup. Even before Alderweireld went out of the lineup, he’d lost his starting spot to Victor Wanyama. The Kenyan hasn’t shown any signs of giving it back either.
That means Dier needs to be given space and time to recover his form and confidence. He should enter into a rotation with Wanyama and Mousa Dembele in the double-pivot. He shouldn’t get the starting nod in the biggest matches, but he’s perfectly capable of playing against mid-tier and lower Premier League clubs.
Tottenham need to use the rest of the year to determine whether or not they can really count on Dier as Dembele’s long-term replacement. If they can’t, if could force them into an awkward transfer decision this summer.