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Eric Dier reveals family no longer attend away games and details THAT incident in the stands

Eric Dier reveals his family no longer attend away games and details THAT memorable incident in the stands a few years back.

The Tottenham centre-half, who returns to the England squad for the first time since March 2021 having found the best form of his career, went into the stands to confront a hostile fan after his club lost at home to Norwich in the FA Cup in March 2020.

Dier was punished, banned for four games and fined £40,000, but explains he had feared for the safety of his younger brother, Patrick, who had an argument with a supporter.

Dier, who didn’t get to the fan, who turned and fled when he saw him coming, said on Tuesday that he had no regrets and would do it again to protect a loved one.

Dier hasn’t kept quiet on the situation that played out, dealing with it privately and it’s bothered him for some time.

“It has definitely got worse [since the incident in March 2020],” Dier said at St Geroge’s Park. “For me, it is a serious problem. I had some family and friends at the Chelsea away game with Tottenham [at the start of this season] and they had problems. Not nice ones, either. It is a huge, huge problem. It was verbal, not physical but, like, bad stuff. One incident was in the Tottenham away end. I want to emphasise that it was both sets of fans. I am not saying it is Chelsea fans or Tottenham fans – it is football fans in general.

“I never complain about this stuff and I don’t really mind. We played Burnley after I went in the stands for the next away game and the Burnley fans were singing a song about my brother and I like that kind of thing. I find it quite funny. I like that kind of humour … if it is in the right way. I love playing away games and I enjoy those kinds of atmospheres. It is part of it.

“But there are some things I find very strange. It is not nice. My family would never go to an away game nowadays because of it and that’s a shame that I feel too uncomfortable for them to go. This has been for years. My Mum has not been to an away game. She would love to but I would be worried about it, and that’s crazy, isn’t it? All of our families go through it. Every player’s parents have been watching them since they were kids and have gone through that kind of stuff.”

Dier reflected on the incident with the abusive supporter after the Norwich cup tie, saying: “I’ve never spoken about that situation in the press before because, to be honest, I wasn’t at all happy with the way it was handled. I don’t know what I can say about it because I don’t know if I’ll get banned or fined again.

“It wasn’t too dramatic, like people make it out to be. But yeah, I don’t regret it at all and I’d do it again. [For] my family, my teammates, anyone, a friend of mine. I consider myself to be extremely loyal.”

The lowest point of Dier’s career came under José Mourinho over the second half of the 2020-21 season, missing out on the European Championship in the summer of 2021.

However Dier was determined to fight on, leave the past in the past, and is reborn at Spurs under Antonio Conte, who was appointed as the manager in November of last year, and now Gareth Southgate has brought him back.

“I don’t want to sound like a teacher’s pet but he [Conte] has done a lot for me – in every aspect,” Dier said. “Ever since he arrived, I have never learnt so much. He is the godfather of that [three-at-the-back] system so you’re constantly evolving within that. He probably gave me my belief back a little bit as well. I think I’ve reached my best level in my career, not just this season but last season as well. I’m getting better and I can get better.”

Dier, who won the last of his 45 caps against Iceland in November 2020, was asked about the possibility of reaching the half-century. “It would mean a lot. It’s something that when I wasn’t in the squad it was playing on my mind that I was so close to it. That did annoy me. I would love to be able to get to that kind of milestone. I’ve seen they’ve got a board up now in the reception of the hotel [at St Georges’ Park] of all the people who have made 50 and 100. It’s a dream to be able to reach that.”

England manager Gareth Southgate has branded this year’s spate of football violence as a national ’embarrassment’. Because of what happened for the Euros final, the Three Lions had to play behind closed doors. 

Southgate said: ‘It’s no different to how I feel when I am on holiday and I see people not behaving themselves as they should be.

‘You are embarrassed if people who are English behave badly because that then creates a difficult environment for the next English people who travel there.

‘We are all tarnished when that happens. People who are watching the final here, that is their view of our society, from what they see. That then affects all of us, eventually.

‘We’ve got the embarrassment now of playing behind closed doors at home.

‘Normally when you watch those things having happened abroad, we’re all grandstanding about it’s someone’s else’s problem and how that country should be dealt with, and now it’s us. Again, that’s not a good optic on our country.’

Southgate feared his warnings would be pointless in trying to prevent fans from misbehaving.

‘I doubt they’d listen to it, really. Because we’re always giving those matches but frankly if people are going to cause trouble, it’s not going to make a jot of difference what I say.

‘I just think we’re representing the country, so is everybody that travels, and we should be good ambassadors for our country and leave a good impression.’

This is how fans reacted after Eric Dier reveals his family no longer attend away games and details THAT incident in the stands from a few years back…

@drcrelee: He’s absolutely spot on

@Gary_Poynton: The abuse is, of course, uncalled for but players’ families shouldn’t be getting tickets in away ends anyway

@rahulpuri: I think he is spot on here. Fan engagement has got worse. More abusive, vitriolic and social media just amplifies it.

@therealchisler: Great comments on fan behaviour @ericdier 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

@DavidWilliamsDK: @ericdier – I think he is right. Fans behaviour has got worse in England, but also other countries, in Denmark we have many issue right now. I think it has got something to do with anger after lockdown, angry Men, Mental Health issues, it goes deeper.

@Robbiecoppack: Completely agree with this. Don’t have much of an appetite to go on away games because more people are more fussed about getting smashed and a getting in scraps.

@cayden_sands: He’s right

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