Tottenham’s Eric Dier has been the key to the club’s success thus far. He arrived as a centre-back, but has been adapting to play many positions, and has now become one of the most important players in the starting eleven. Yet, he seems to be overshadowed by the triumvirate of Harry Kane, Hugo Lloris and Christian Eriksen. Dier has contributed just as much as these three to Spurs’ success this season.

Dier first arrived as a centre-back, promising to steady the rickety Spurs defence. Pochettino then deployed him at right-back, where again he proved himself capable of locking down the defence. His adaptability only increased when the manager saw the potential for him to become a defensive midfielder. In this new role, he has developed into a pivotal player for the club by protecting the defence, but also by playing a bigger role in the whole structure of the team.

When defending, he is a screen that helps fill the hole outside the box, which negates any space for attackers. But, he has an equally important role when his team are attacking. The prevalence of wing-backs at Spurs is partly due to the fact he drops back between the two centre-backs when attacking, so that Kyle Walker and Danny Rose can venture further up the pitch. Therefore, he is crucial to the team structure and Pochettino’s philosophy. Dier is the player that allows Eriksen to create goals and Kane to score them, because he acts as the backbone of the team, giving security at the back to ward against counter-attacks.

Whilst Kane and Eriksen grab the headlines, Dier often dodges the plaudits. The main reason for this is that he does the dirty work. This includes all the tackles, interceptions, blocks, headers, clearances and most importantly, fouls. Fouling always has negative connotations, yet it is a necessary and important part of the game. With 65 fouls this season in the Premier League, notching 9 yellow cards, he is performing the midfield anchor role perfectly. In the right areas, such as on the half way line or perhaps closer to his own box, he brings down opponents to allow his team to reorganise. By doing this, counter-attacks are often stopped in their tracks and swapped for a harmless 50-yard free-kick which can be easily defended. Sometimes, such fouls may be seen as unnecessary, but if the whistle has been blown for a foul on the half-way line, there is a lot less chance of the opposition scoring. This is one the factors in Spurs’ defensive success this season. With only 25 league goals conceded thus far, compared to the total of 53 conceded last season, it is clear that the defence has improved and this is due to Dier’s meteoric rise.

A final reason that Tottenham’s Eric Dier has been so important this season is the fact that he is a unique player. He fits the role perfectly because he has forged it, under guidance from Pochettino. It is no surprise that he is one of only five players to play more than 30 matches this season. This illustrates his importance — he is irreplaceable in the starting eleven. Mousa Dembélé, Ryan Mason and Nabil Bentaleb can all be deemed to perform a defensive midfield role, but none has been more capable than Dier. Maybe it is the result of his journey from centre-back; that training as a defender has lead to him being much more successful in his current role. On the other hand Dembélé, Mason and Bentaleb all have a more attacking streak in them. For example, Mason used to be a centre-forward during his youth academy days. Therefore, Dier seems to be the only true midfield destroyer that Tottenham have.

.@LedleyKing: “Eric Dier, in his first season as a midfielder, has been the stand-out player for this season.” #THFC — Talking THFC (@TalkingTHFC) April 6, 2016

The success that Spurs have experienced this season has to be attributed to the now competent and strong defence. Dier has been the stand-out player in helping the defence as the anchor and deserves credit for his invaluable performances this season.

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