Eric Dier will have to wait for an England call-up for at least another few months as the likes of Harry Maguire, Ben White and Conor Coady were chosen by Gareth Southgate ahead of him. The 28-year-old has become such a vital player under Antonio Conte this season but clearly still hasn't done enough to get a call back to play for his country.
Dier has now not featured in an England squad since a year ago, where he was on the bench against San Marino and Poland in the World Cup qualification games last March. After Southgate's England side was announced for the looming international break on Wednesday, the Spurs defender's name was yet again not on the list.
The defender has played 90 minutes and started all but one of the 25 Premier League games he has featured in so far this season. The 28-year-old missed out on four league games due to injury, which clarified further the impact he has on a Tottenham side.
READ MORE: Antonio Conte explains exactly why Eric Dier's return is so important for Tottenham
The Italian praised Dier ahead of his return and since Cristian Romero has also recovered from his injury, Conte has been able to work with his strong back line of the duo alongside Ben Davies. The trio have started in the Lilywhites' last seven games and produced solid performances on a number of occasions.
Dier is a vocal player in the Tottenham squad and acts as a leader in the back three, which Hugo Lloris has pointed out and were attributes Spurs were missing when he was absent. Conte has admitted he believes the 28-year-old can "become one of the best players in the world in that position" and Dier has been one of a number of players who have really stepped up since the Italian's arrival.
The Lilywhites' most recent game at the Amex Stadium on Wednesday night was no different and the defender was once again a key player in Tottenham's 2-0 victory. Dier made four clearances, had 89.7 per cent passing accuracy and dealt with much of what was thrown at him, despite an early head injury.
This is a continuation of his recent performances which is why some fans were shocked when he wasn't named in Southgate's England squad for the upcoming international break. A number of the usual suspects were amongst the 25-man squad named, with some getting another chance and a couple of new faces joining the squad.
Dier has competition in the back line, from the likes of John Stones, Maguire, Tyrone Mings and Coady and hasn't yet impressed Southgate enough to steal one of their spots. In the 51-year-old's press conference on Thursday, after the announcement, he was asked about Maguire being included in the squad, despite his recent drop in form.
"I don’t think it ever crossed our minds not to select Harry Maguire for this squad, he’s been a key part of the starting XI that got us to a World Cup semi-final and a European Championship final," Southgate admitted. "I know the club are going through a difficult period, but you’ve got to look at who are our best players and the core of the team, and he’s in that group. There’s no doubt in my mind that he’s one of our best centre-backs and form, in that sense, is temporary," the England boss added. Southgate's choices clearly come from a mixture of form but also those he trusts and relies on, which can't be argued with.
However Dier may be starting to ask himself what more he has to do to get back into the squad and a chance to play for his country once again. Maguire has made one less Premier League appearance for Man United than Dier has made for Spurs this season. The Red Devils are currently fifth in the table, two points ahead of the Lilywhites but having played one extra game.
The 29-year-old has had double the shots that the Tottenham defender has but when it comes to their defending, there is more of a split of statistics. The 28-year-old has made three fewer blocks (24) and interceptions (18) than Maguire. However, Conte's man has made 11 more clearances (95) than the United defender and committed almost half the number of fouls (9). Of course managers will be looking at individual performances, but football requires the whole team to make an impact and help them win as many games as possible.
Dier has created three big chances, to Maguire's zero and has 1.89 per cent better passing completion (87.74). The 28-year-old has better statistics in the amount of touches he makes, through balls he produces and passes forward he does.
There are likely to be fans from both teams who would be in support of their side's player, as they watch them week in and week out and know exactly how they're performing overall, rather than in individual games. However Dier has been praised since the start of the season, after his Player of the Month nomination in September and has made a clear improvement, whilst Maguire has struggled to find consistent form.
The Spurs defender has gone from strength to strength under Conte and his importance has been clearly shown when he has been unavailable. There will be hope that if Dier's form can continue for the rest of this season and into the start of next season, Southgate will have something to think about in the runup to the 2022 World Cup and whose England spot that would put in jeopardy will be a waiting game.
