WORD

is that Manchester United have been quoted £50million for Eric Dier this summer. Yet if Tottenham are serious about winning the title under Mauricio Pochettino, how can they put any price on the deal? Tottenham have finished above United for the last two seasons but if the club reverts to solving problems at Old Trafford — harking back to the days when they sold Dimitar Berbatov and Michael Carrick — there is no way those positions can be maintained. It would be a good price for Dier but, even so, strengthening a problem area for United and weakening Tottenham’s own midfield — not to mention the message it would send to essential team-mates such as Dele Alli — makes it a very bad deal.