Pundit fears Eric Dier will 'get in bother' after what he's seen at Tottenham
Frank McAvennie has claimed Tottenham defender Eric Dier will get "destroyed" by players like Cristiano Ronaldo and Erling Haaland later in the season.
Speaking exclusively to Football Insider, the former West Ham striker is adamant Dier is "not a centre-half" and said he should be playing as a central midfielder.
The 28-year-old helped the Lilywhites keep a clear sheet in a 1-0 win over Wolves on Saturday (20 August).
Dier played the full 90 minutes of the game alongside Davinson Sanchez and Ben Davies.
The former England international was on the scoresheet for the first time in three years as Spurs beat Southampton 4-1 in their first game of the season.
However, McAvennie doubts Dier's credentials and claimed the player will struggle if he continues to play in the heart of Antonio Conte's defence.
"Dier is still playing centre-half, he’s not a centre-half but he’s doing well," he told Football Insider.
"He’s not done anything wrong but I think when you come up against good players, like Ronaldo, Haaland, he’s going to be in a bit of bother because he’s a midfield player playing centre-half.
"To go and keep a player of that quality quiet, I think that’s when people will say he’s a midfield player not a centre-half because I think they’ll destroy him. They’ll drag him everywhere."
Dier made 40 appearances for Tottenham across all competitions last season.
He has two years remaining on his contract.