Eric Dier admits Tottenham ‘crisis’ but denies squad unrest rumours

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Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Eric Dier believes the club is in a “crisis” at the moment, The Mirror reports.

Dier has urged Tottenham to break through this difficult period and come out of the other side. He added that despite this being a troubling time, rumours of squad unrest are wide of the mark.

Tottenham have started October in disastrous fashion. They were thrashed 7-2 at home to Bayern Munich before Brighton comfortably dispatched them with a 3-0 win on the south coast.

This followed just two wins in September. Spurs blew a two-goal lead against Olympiacos, lost to Leicester after leading and were beaten on penalties by League Two minnows Colchester United in the EFL Cup.

Dier: ‘Crisis’

Dier, who has recently earned a recall to the team, has described this period as a ‘crisis’. He said (via The Mirror): “We are obviously going through a difficult period. Is saying it’s a crisis a bit too strong? No.

“If you lose like we’ve lost in these last two games, it’s ­normal. For us, this is the worst period we’ve been in, but we have to be all together and push through it.”

TBR’s view: For a club pushing for silverware and success, it has been a catastrophic 2019/20 campaign so far. The North London club are already out of the EFL Cup, struggling in the Champions League and 13 points off the top. Is it a crisis? Well, this depends on how these Spurs players react after the international break.

Dier: ‘Not the case’

There have been some rumours flying around suggesting that the squad is unhappy. Tottenham’s players have been renowned for their unity and camaraderie but this seems to be lacking at the moment. This speculation has an inevitably pernicious effect on the squad morale but Dier insists there is no unrest in the camp.

He added (via The Mirror): “The stuff about the squad, I know that’s not the case. But it’s natural these things will come up now because of the situation we find ourselves in. It’s the first time that we’ve found ourselves in this position, we can’t back down from it. We’ve got to push through it.”

TBR’s view: It is difficult to pinpoint the epicentre of this Spurs problem but something is clearly wrong. Is it the Christian Eriksen situation? Possibly. Complacency? Less likely. Lack of faith in Mauricio Pochettino? This seems unlikely.

Whatever it is needs addressing as soon as possible. During the international break, there needs to be an inquest into players’ mentality, commitment and form. Spurs should turn this around – but these are worrying signs.