Tottenham star distances himself from Manchester United move

Eric Dier is not interested in leaving Tottenham for Manchester United

It seems that transfer rumours linking Tottenham star Eric Dier to a big money move to Manchester United have been overblown by the English press. The versatile Spurs star admits that he suffered from an extended dip in form last season, but insists it had nothing to do with pining for a move to Old Trafford.

Dier hasn’t fully articulated the reasons behind his struggles last season, but he is quite clear that it had “nothing to do with Manchester United.” Instead, he believes that his lack of communication with manager Mauricio Pochettino was behind a large portion of his struggles. Fortunately for Spurs fans, he claims he’s learned from the whole ordeal and his relationship with Pochettino is now back up to par.

The rift between Dier and Pochettino recently became public. As the story goes, Pochettino took exception to Jose Mourinho’s post-match chat with Dier after a hotly contested United win. The Spurs boss accused his United counterpart at trying to destabilize his English star.

No matter which side of that debate you fall on, it’s good to know that Dier is feeling better about things now. His game has shown real signs of improving as of late. He isn’t all the way back to the white-hot form that catapulted him into the England squad, but he’s within striking distance. Once again, Dier has made himself an invaluable player in Pochettino’s squad.

In truth, we’ll never know whether or not Dier really did have his head turned by United. The reality is that Pochettino and the rest of the higher-ups at Tottenham made it quite clear they wouldn’t sanction a move. Daniel Levy and company deserve credit for standing up to the pressure of United on this occasion.

Dier deserves credit for handling the aftermath of his struggles maturely as well. It would have been easy for him to hit out at Tottenham or Pochettino for failing to keep the discord quiet. Many Spurs fans have wondered whether or not Pochettino should have been so open in his book.

Next: Time for Spurs to move on from maligned midfielder

Ultimately, Dier has come to the mature realization that Tottenham are the best club for him right now. As long as Spurs continue their upward trajectory under Pochettino, there’s no reason for him to seek a move elsewhere. The money, success and fame will come for him right where he is.