Eric Dier’s transfer to FC Bayern is fixed. The 29-year-old Englishman is coming to Munich from Tottenham like his friend Harry Kane, as the club announced in the evening. But what role the central defender will actually play remains to be seen.
49-time England international, seasoned Premier League player, Champions League finalist, 29 years old – on paper, Eric Dier sounds like the ideal player to strengthen FC Bayern’s defense. On Thursday, the Munich-based company announced the first access this winter. The Englishman comes from Tottenham Hotspur for a bargain price.
Dier was recently just a benchwarmer at Tottenham
And this is exactly where the small print begins at Dier. Because Tottenham wanted to get rid of the defender. Of his 274 Premier League games, he only played four this season. Under the new Tottenham coach Ante Postecoglou, Dier was mostly only found on the substitutes’ bench. Sometimes not even there.
Even in the absence of the two regular central defenders Micky van de Ven and Cristian Romero, the Spurs coach preferred to rely on two trained full-backs rather than the veteran. And so Dier was left out of the England national team squad.
FC Bayern’s squad situation as an opportunity for the new signing
But Dier definitely has the potential to get a bigger role in Munich again. Above all, because FC Bayern is desperately looking to strengthen its central defense. Since Min-jae Kim is at the Asian Cup and talent Tarek Buchmann continues to struggle with injuries, the squad structure alone means there is a need for an experienced central defender. “We hope that this will free up Leon Goretzka. Leon no longer has to switch from left defensive midfield to right central defense,” said Tuchel with a wink at the press conference on Thursday.
Last season, Dier was still an undisputed regular player. After the summer, Dier reportedly had no chance of a bigger role at Tottenham from the start. Coach Postecoglou is said to have told Dier shortly after his arrival at Tottenham that he would no longer rely on him – and kept his word. The angular Englishman’s style did not suit the coach’s variable attacking game, which relies on flexible players who can quickly change and shift positions.
Work setting could impress Tuchel
But Tuchel also values strong defenders. Before the winter, he emphasized that the build-up game from defense was actually his team’s highlight. Is Dier, who completes an average of around 85 percent of his passes throughout his career, a perfect fit there? His new central defender colleagues all have pass rates of over 91 percent – and in the risky build-up game they made enough bad passes that led to goals conceded.
But his playing philosophy and work ethic are likely to be a reason why Tuchel is said to have expressed interest in Dier last summer. “A good player in Portugal is someone who understands when he has made a mistake and corrects it himself,” said Dier, who grew up as a child in Portugal, learned to play football at Sporting in Lisbon and made his professional debut there. Tuchel has a similar approach. He doesn’t want to give a rigid tactical concept, but rather convey a basic idea in training and players who find their own solutions to problems through constant repetition.
Storming into the stands – Dier got into a fight with fans
A good four years ago, Dier showed that he does indeed sometimes find unusual solutions. At a Tottenham game, his brother got into an argument in the stands that threatened to turn into a physical altercation. Dier didn’t hesitate for long, sprinted towards the stands, climbed the seats, made his way through the fans and came to his brother’s aid.
The result: a four-game ban and a fine of around 45,000 euros. “I’m not sorry. I would do it the same way again,” he later said in the Guardian. “For my family, my teammates, whoever, friends. I would describe myself as extremely loyal.”
Kane buddy and “glue guy” – will FCB be lucky with a winter transfer?
Many teammates confirmed that Dier is a good teammate. In Tottenham he was called a “glue guy”, someone who kept the dressing room together, who was good for the climate. With his language skills and his experience abroad, he helped new players gain a foothold at Tottenham.
An old companion will now help him in Munich. Harry Kane shared a dressing room with Dier for nine years – at club and in the national team. Now they are teammates again. Of course, that can only help Dier. But his performance on the pitch will have the greatest influence on whether he becomes a real reinforcement or whether he joins the sometimes disappointing winter transfers that FC Bayern have recently made. They particularly stand out in defense: whether Dailey Blind, Álvaro Odriozola or Serdar Tasci – the Munich team only rarely showed a good hand in the winter.
League leadership and relegation battle, current fixtures, results and live ticker, top scorer lists, mileage and tackle statistics and much more: Football in the BR24Sport results center.
Source: BR24Sport January 11, 2024 – 6:30 p.m
