Anthony Onifade

Fri 29 December 2023 21:10, UK

Eric Dier may now be just days away from departing Tottenham after one Ange Postecoglou decision against Brighton.

A superb display from the Seagulls on the south coast saw them overcome Postecoglou’s team with a resounding 4-2 win in the Premier League at the Amex Stadium on Thursday (28 December).

Tottenham dominated the early proceedings, but the hosts ran riot after two goals from Joao Pedro, a well-hit opener from Jack Hinshelwood and a Pervis Estupinan stunner put them four goals ahead.

Postecoglou’s men delivered a late surge in the closing stages of the game that saw summer signing Alejo Veliz and Ben Davies score but it was all too little too late for Spurs as they missed the chance to go back into the Premier League top four, now sitting a point behind Manchester City.

Postecoglou suffered yet another hammer injury blow to his squad this week when he confirmed on Wednesday (27 December) that Argentinian defender Cristian Romero will be out for up to five weeks with a hamstring problem.

Fabrizio Romano shared via his official X platform (27 December), that Postecoglou told the media: “Romero had a scan and he’s got a hamstring strain. We’re looking at four to five weeks with him.”

The Argentina international now joins a significant absentee list of James Maddison, Rodrigo Bentancur, Ivan Perisic and impressive summer signing and defensive partner Micky van de Ven, which has left the Australian coach deploying square pegs in round holes at centre-back.

While the rarely-seen Ben Davies has grabbed much praise and acclaim in Van de Ven’s absence, the same can’t be said for Dier.

It took the 29-year-old until the 4-1 defeat against Chelsea in early November to make his first appearance of the season for the club after the suspension of Romero.

The England international underwent talks with chairman Daniel Levy after being frozen out from the squad.

And according to The Athletic journalist David Ornstein, sharing on his weekly Q&A (14 December), signing a new centre-back will be a priority for Postecoglou but it may not suggest someone like Dier will be leaving the club.

While that may be a possibility, Dier certainly looks finished at the club given his limited minutes and the stats from his two appearances this season, and indeed overall, suggest he should be preparing for the worst in January.

Last season, Dier played 42 times across all competitions as Spurs finished eighth in the Premier League, failed to qualify for Europe and crashed out of both cups against inferior sides.

The England international hasn’t even proven over the past 365 days that he can fulfil the progressive duties that Postecoglou demands from his centre-backs, ranking only in the 60th percentile for pass completion per 90, among centre-backs within Europe’s top five leagues, and in the 40th percentile for progressive passes per 90 [FBRef].

Against Chelsea on 6 November, the Englishman completed 100 per cent of his duels but was only involved in two of them. However, in his 56 minutes on the pitch, Dier only completed 71 per cent of his passes, failed with 100 per cent of his long balls [SofaScore] and failed to register a single tackle as Raheem Sterling and Nicolas Jackson ran rings around him.

The dramatic late defeat to Wolves was a much better performance for the former Sporting defender, registering five clearances and completing 94 per cent of his passes but in the end, he won just 33 per cent of his total duels, and completed one of his five long balls, whilst failing to deal with the long ball that led to Wolves’ winner.

An issue that Dier has regularly faced in North London is that no one has ever truly known his best position. Is he better as a centre-back or is he a better defensive midfielder?

The stats don’t even suggest either and Postecoglou surely knows that hence his decision to overlook him regularly so far this season, including against Brighton when he again chose Emerson Royal instead.

While the call didn’t exactly go well, it’s a decision that certainly suggests the end is nigh for the England international.

With Tottenham on the hunt for a defender in the January window, the omens certainly don’t look good for Dier and for that reason alone an exit route seems the best-case scenario.

In other Tottenham news, one star player was dubbed “lazy” and “foolish” after what he did in the first-half against Brighton.