Mauricio Pochettino and Antonio Conte's prediction gives Gareth Southgate an England dilemma

Eric Dier is one player who has seen a major improvement under Antonio Conte. The defender is now one of the first names on the teamsheet, in the middle of the back three for Tottenham.

The 28-year-old has made 34 Premier League appearances so far this season, starting in all of his features. Dier has made 138 clearances, produced 123 accurate long balls and made 122 recoveries, indicating his impact.

The English international's multi-lingual qualities help break the language barrier with his fellow teammates and his improvement during matches has become consistent, something Spurs have needed. Now the Lilywhites sit just one point away from securing Champions League football next season, which the whole squad will be hoping to achieve.

Antonio Conte names the Tottenham star that can become 'one of the best players in the world'

Dier is one Spurs players who has been at the club for a number of years, making his move from Sporting Lisbon in 2014. The 28-year-old actually started his career in north London as more of a defensive midfielder, but over the years has moulded into the defender he is today.

Dier has been subject to a lot of criticism over the years and last September, Frank McAvennie made a big claim about the defender. "Eric Dier has never been a centre half. When you watch him you can see that he just hasn’t got it," he said.

A few months before those comments, the 28-year-old spoke about some of the criticism he has received and that he believes that it can sometimes be "unfair". "I believe I can still perform to a much higher level. I’m happy to be playing, obviously, and I’ve just got to keep working hard and improving," the defender admitted.

"Sometimes I’ve made a mistake or something has led to a goal