Former Manchester United academy star defends Eric Dier’s German accent after viral interview

Eric Dier has been the subject of many jokes in the past week after speaking on German TV following his debut for Bayern Munich.

The 30-year-old, who is on loan from Tottenham until the end of the season, came off the bench at half-time of his side’s 1-0 win over Union Berlin.

All went to plan for the England international and he was happy to conduct interviews after the match.

People were quick to joke about Dier going full Steve McClaren by speaking with a German accent – throwback to when the Manchester United assistant spoke with a Dutch accent while he was manager of FC Twente. Moreover, Joey Barton did it with a French accent during his time at Marseille.

Sky Sports host Simon Thomas also went in on Dier, insisting that he spoke with a ‘terrible’ accent. He tweeted: “Absolutely magnificent. That embarrassingly common habit of thinking a terrible accent equals a valiant attempt at speaking another language.”

Though Dier was born in England, he grew up in Portugal and played for Sporting Lisbon before joining Tottenham in 2014.

Former Manchester United academy graduate Angel Gomes, who currently plays for Lille in Ligue 1, offered a more calculated take on Dier’s German accent. He said: “Try speaking England in France with a salfordian accent and see if they understand. You have to adapt to your environment for people to understand especially when they aren’t speaking their first language.”

Try speaking English in France with a salfordian accent and see if they understand 😂. You have to adapt to your environment for people to understand especially when they aren’t speaking their first language 🤦🏽‍♂️ https://t.co/wTLWq50DJ7

— Santi Gomes (@agomes_47) January 25, 2024

Gomes, unlike Thomas from Sky Sports, speaks with experience having lived in multiple countries.

If I spoke English with an Irish accent to a German bloke who wanted to try their England they wouldn’t have a clue what I’m saying. By simply slowing down you might become clearer.

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