DEADBALL DODGERS

JOSE, THE DIER BOSS

ERIC DIER was unprofessional, leaping into the stand to confront a Tottenham supporter (above).

No question about that.

Steve Coppell, my former boss at Crystal Palace, said the mark of a professional was doing the difficult stuff where an amateur wouldn’t.

So, you didn’t bawl your eyes out if a pal broke a leg. That was a sign of weakness. You didn’t go out on a Friday night for a few ales. If your mum was insulted by fans, she had to stay insulted. You didn’t react.

So, as out of order as Dier was, I can’t help asking myself the question as to whether he would have acted that way under Mauricio Pochettino.

His former boss seemed to set a great example for the players. Jurgen Klopp, at Liverpool, does likewise.

Does Jose Mourinho? Has he ever? In the past, he’s hidden in kit skips, called referees “enemies of football”, Arsene Wenger “a specialist in failure” and painted him as “a voyeur”.

He’s making excuses now that Spurs can’t manage two games in four days with the squad they have, moaning about the injuries.

It’s draining, that negativity.

And if players see a manager flouting the rules, why shouldn’t they?

I can’t remember much other than positivity when Poch was in charge.

And I’m sure as heck Dier would have reacted professionally, had that been the case.

IT makes you wonder if teams at the bottom were less concerned about style and more about the nitty-gritty that they’d win more points.

I’m talking about a lack of organisation at set-pieces.

It seems that, despite all the sports scientists, nutritionists, analysts, data collection, recruitment departments and coaching, threats from deadball situations aren’t taken seriously.

Defending and attacking setpieces should be a starting point and, time and again, teams such as Aston Villa give away soft goals – as they did last week in the Carabao Cup final against Manchester City.

Villa have John Terry in their coaching ranks, but still managed to lose a goal from a corner last week.

Never mind the style, give me the substance of seeing a well-drilled defensive unit at deadball situations.

And the proof of that will be seen in the points earned – meaning, for some, the difference between relegation and staying up.