Ledley King has hailed Eric Dier’s importance to Tottenham, and says the England international’s unusual versatility is one the club’s best assets.

Spurs have rejected at least one bid from Manchester United for Dier and insist he is not for sale at any price.

United believe Dier could play in defensive midfield, where he flourished for Spurs in the 2015-16 season, but their £45 million capture of Nemanja Matic from Chelsea is likely to end their interest in the former Sporting Lisbon player.

Dier joined Spurs as a centre-back in summer 2014 but he was moved forward by manager Mauricio Pochettino in the following season and he has since established himself as England’s holding midfielder.

The arrival of Victor Wanyama, and Pochettino’s switch to three centre-backs, meant Dier returned to the heart of defence last term but King — a former Spurs centre-back who played in midfield for club and country early in his career — believes Dier’s ability to play both positions is crucial.

“I remember watching him in pre-season in Denver [in 2015], and he impressed me straight away,” King said. “At the time, I didn’t know he could step into midfield and perform that well.

“I quickly saw he was capable of that and he went on to have a great season in midfield. I’m not sure what position he would say he wants to play, but he does both equally well.

“It can be difficult but playing multiple positions is the sign of a good player. When you’re competing in a tough team that’s full of top players, you’re usually happy to be on the pitch and to have a starting position. He can start and if he feels as comfortable at the back as he does in midfield, it may be no problem to him.

“That’s a great strength that this Tottenham team have. They are able to play three centre-halves or two, so you can change. You’ve seen Eric either step out or step back and make subtle adjustments. It’s a great strength for any team to have, without having to change your personnel. It makes it a lot easier. People rotate a lot more now and that’s one of the things that surprised me about how easy it was for Eric.

“With the ball at his feet he looks very comfortable and very cultured. He doesn’t give the ball away at all but also he’s not just playing sideways and backwards, he’s turning on the ball under pressure and playing forward balls, and he’s been brilliant.”

King also backed his former team-mate Scott Parker to adjust more quickly to coaching than he did after the 36-year-old returned to Tottenham as Under-18 coach in June.

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King was appointed to the same role in July 2014 but has taken a step back from coaching after finding the adjustment difficult.

“Coming from the professional mentality where every point matters, every mistake is magnified, to working with young kids where you have to allow them to make mistakes to develop themselves is different,” King said. “Scott has been doing his badges for a while and I think he understands that more than I did. He’ll have no problem.”