Thomas Tuchel eyes England role for ex-Tottenham player sold for just £3m

TBR Football has learned that Eric Dier was very close to being included in the latest England squad and has not fallen off Tuchel’s radar.

The Monaco defender, who moved from Bayern Munich to Monaco in May 2025, has not played for the national team since facing Senegal in December 2022, when he was 28.

Now 31, Dier has found form again at Monaco, even scoring a late equaliser against Manchester City in the Champions League this week – a moment that did not go unnoticed by Tuchel.

Tyrick Mitchell of Crystal Palace and Lyon’s Ainsley Maitland-Niles were reportedly under consideration for recalls too.

Speaking about Dier, Bailey noted: “Tuchel is not afraid to look at players who were perhaps not seen as having England futures, and we have seen that with the likes of Jordan Henderson and Ruben Loftus-Cheek.”

“But someone like Dier, you can see why he might be in World Cup consideration given his ability to play multiple positions. Both Maitland-Niles and Mitchell have been outstanding and were looked at. They play in positions where England are a little short due to injuries at full-back.”

Dier feels he has something to prove back home

During his time at Bayern Munich, Dier spoke about feeling underappreciated towards the end of his Tottenham career.

Speaking to ESPN, he said: “I didn’t feel like I was always given a fair shake during my time in England.

“I was motivated by that when I came here (to Germany) and motivated to do well for this club, to try and play as best as I can individually and to help the team play as well as it can collectively. That is my main focus, but I definitely felt that (lack of appreciation) a little bit when I left England.”

Since leaving Tottenham in a £3.4m deal, Dier has been using that motivation to climb back up, making an impact in the Champions League and catching Tuchel’s attention in the process.