A Tottenham player reborn or a case of favourable circumstance?

Is Tottenham’s Eric Dier enjoying a renaissance under Antonio Conte or is he simply benefitting from a collection of favourable circumstances? 

Spurs’ centre back endured an extended poor run of form under Jose Mourinho. Riddled by injury and sickness, Dier went through a period of adversity, it seemed, he could not overcome. Dier committed grave, reckless and inexplicable errors more often than the Piccadilly Line frequents Convent Garden during peak hour. His careless mistakes became as commonplace as having to stand like a sardine while commuting on London’s Underground.

Dier’s blunders cost Spurs bundles of points and numerous positions on last season’s Premier League table. He was, by all intents and purposes, a dead man walking at Tottenham Hotspur Football Club. His departure from the club he joined in 2014 was probable, if not imminent.

His status, however, has changed from a dispensable member of the squad to a fundamental part of Tottenham’s recent revival.

Does Dier deserve all the recognition and is he a player reborn under Conte, or is his recent good fortune merely down to Tottenham’s comparatively easy run of fixtures?

There’s no arguing the fact that Spurs have played inferior opponents over the last few weeks. An away match against Everton, a side that, by beating Arsenal on Monday, won their first match in almost two months, was followed by home contests against two newly promoted sides.

So while Dier’s recent form is encouraging, one has to wonder whether the 27-year-old will be able to marshal Tottenham’s backline as confidently, calmly and proficiently against the top flight’s elite as he did against Everton, Norwich and Brentford.

Let’s for a second disregard the level of recent opposition. Dier appears more composed and poised. He’s emitting an aura of assuredness and doesn’t look like he’s about to commit one of the foolish errors we have become accustomed to.

Time, and tests against sterner opposition, will tell whether Tottenham’s central marshal is indeed reborn and ready to consistently, and significantly, raise his level. Recent signs are encouraging. More fit and fierce, thanks to Conte’s fiery instruction, Dier appears to have awakened from an almost two-year coma.

Let’s just hope he doesn’t return to the state of unconsciousness that put his Tottenham career in serious jeopardy.