Tottenham boss Antonio Conte says Eric Dier is currently one of the best defenders in the Premier League and has backed him to go to the World Cup.
Dier was yesterday left out of Gareth Southgate’s England squad again, with out-of-form Harry Maguire keeping his place and a maiden call up for Crystal Palace’s Marc Guehi for the friendlies against Switzerland and Ivory Coast.
“Honestly, I hoped for the player to receive a call up,” Conte said ahead of Sunday's derby against West Ham. “He’s working very hard and in this moment he’s one of the best defenders in the league.
“He has also big space to improve his performance and his quality and to become a stronger and stronger player. In the past, I had the chance to coach the national team and I understand that sometimes you have a plan. At the moment, Southgate is preparing and he has a plan to prepare a squad for the World Cup in December.
“He knows Eric very well and he has not to discover Eric because he was previously in the national team. I’m sure if Eric continues to play this way, he has a great possibility to go to the World Cup because, I repeat, he’s one of the best defenders in this league.”
Conte also revealed he had given Cristian Romero the hairdryer treatment in a bid to get the defender to stay focussed for 90 minutes.
Romero picked up his eighth yellow card in 15 Premier League appearances in Wednesday’s win over Brighton and Conte admitted to shouting at the Argentine.
“Cristian has to be focussed in every moment of a game,” Conte said. “If he’s good, he’s focussed from the start, from the first to last second of the game. And he’s a really important player for us.
“He has a bit to improve in this situation, to be focussed on every moment of the game. Sometimes he gets a yellow card he can avoid. He has to improve in his aspect, to be focussed from the start to the end. Sometimes you can’t explain this in a good manner – you have to shout!
“But he’s a good guy and he understands that what I do is always best for the team and himself. He has the quality to be a great defender so it’s important to find the right way to improve the player.”
Conte said he was hopeful Oliver Skipp would return to fitness after the international break, having been sidelined with a groin injury since January.
But it is understood there is less optimism elsewhere at the club, with Skipp having been advised to rest by specialists.
“We’ll have two weeks to see an improvement and try to make him ready for the [Newcastle] game,” Conte said. “I know the players’ frustration and we’re talking about a really good guy. A top guy, a top man.”
