Tottenham Hotspur defender Eric Dier might not end up joining Bayern Munich after all, as a report has revealed Borussia Dortmund are planning to hijack the transfer.
Dier does not appear to be in the plans of new Tottenham manager Ange Postecoglou. He has been left out of the squad for all four of Tottenham’s matches so far this season, with Postecoglou preferring to operate with Cristian Romero and new signing Micky van de Ven at centre-back.
As Dier is hopeful of getting into the England squad for the 2024 Euros, he cannot afford to be left on the bench or at home. As such, he has been linked with a transfer to several clubs in recent weeks.
Spurs’ London rivals Crystal Palace and Fulham have both looked into signing him. But on Tuesday, it surprisingly emerged that Dier could actually end up signing for reigning Bundesliga champions Bayern instead.
Sky Germany journalist Florian Plettenberg revealed Dier has been offered to Bayern repeatedly in the last few days. Club chiefs at the Allianz Arena are currently weighing up whether to submit an offer to Spurs. The 29-year-old should not cost too much to sign as his contract with Spurs expires next summer.
A move to Bayern would see Dier reunite with former Spurs team-mate Harry Kane, who swapped clubs for an initial £86.4m earlier this summer.
However, Dier signing for Bayern is not a certainty. Indeed, Dortmund are aiming to prevent that move from happening.
As per German source Bild, Dortmund ‘would like to sign’ Dier first. They believe he could be an effective signing due to his ability to play either as a centre-half or defensive midfielder.
Eric Dier on the radars of Bayern and Dortmund
And, as mentioned previously, Dortmund would not have to break the bank for the 49-cap international as his contract is running down and he is not wanted by Postecoglou.
Dier will be delighted if he gets to choose between Bayern and Dortmund. They are the two most successful clubs in Germany, with Bayern having won 83 trophies and Dortmund having won 22. For context, Schalke are in third place with 17 trophies.
While Bayern were the first German heavyweights to be linked with Dier, it is more likely he will end up signing for Dortmund. That is because Bayern boss Thomas Tuchel is currently prioritising a move for Trevoh Chalobah, whom he knows well from his time in charge of Chelsea.
Meanwhile, Spurs have surprisingly identified a Championship defender as a potential replacement for Dier.