Tottenham Hotspur

Eric Dier underlines importance of winning silverware

By Daniel Lewis, Senior Reporter | 09 January 2017

Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Eric Dier talks up the potential of his side's current group of players, who he admits must prove their worth by winning a major honour.

Eric Dier has admitted that a failure to win any sort of silverware over the next five years would be a 'disappointment' for Tottenham Hotspur's current crop of talented players.

The Lilywhites fell short in the Premier League title race last term, eventually finishing 11 points adrift of champions Leicester City after fading away in the closing weeks.

Spurs, with just one major honour to their name since the turn of the century - 2008's League Cup success - are good value to push on from last season, having moved to within seven points of league leaders Chelsea and progressed into round four of the FA Cup.

Speaking after Sunday's 2-0 win over Aston Villa, Dier is quoted by the London Evening Standard as saying: "If in five years' time we hadn't won a trophy with this squad, everyone would be disappointed. Football is about winning trophies.

"Look at the players we have now and the basis we have to win things. We have to keep working hard and improving but the whole squad is desperate to win things. We have a very good group of players, and lots of very good young players coming through the academy who are proving they deserve a chance.

"Challenging on all fronts is very difficult, but that is our aim. The FA Cup is hard. You play lower-league teams with nothing to lose, they will throw everything at you and in a one-off game, anything can happen."

Spurs also lifted the League Cup in 1999 and the FA Cup in 1991, but they have not prevailed in the English top flight since 1961.