Eric Dier relishing Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg link-up at Tottenham

Eric Dier is likely to come up against Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg on Tuesday night but admits he will be much happier when the pair are playing together in the same Tottenham side.

Denmark midfielder Hojbjerg joined Spurs from Premier League rivals Southampton for a reported initial fee of £15million last month.

The 25-year-old will line up alongside England international Dier next year, but the pair will be on opposite sides when the Three Lions face Denmark in their Nations League clash in Copenhagen.

Dier revealed he has been impressed by what he has seen from Hojbjerg so far and feels he will add something extra to Jose Mourinho’s squad.

“I knew him a bit as well from before, just playing against him,” Dier said. “But to see him more closely since he arrived at Tottenham, he is a great player and I think he is going to bring a lot to the Tottenham team.

“I think he has attributes that we were missing a little bit as well in our team at Tottenham – from what I have seen he is very professional, has a fantastic attitude and a fantastic work-rate.

“I think he brings some leadership qualities as well, he speaks a lot on the pitch, he pushes his team-mates and demands things from his team-mates.

“In the way he plays he is quite combative and aggressive and brings a little bit more fight to the midfield, which is good for us.”

Asked if that meant he was happier to play with the former Saints captain than against him, Dier added: “Yes, I’m very happy he is on my team now and hopefully he can have a great season for us at Tottenham.

“I am excited to play with him and happy that he is with us.”

While facing a new team-mate on Tuesday, Dier will also come up against an old friend from Spurs.

Christian Eriksen left Tottenham in January after six-and-a-half years in north London as he joined Inter Milan.

His contract was running down and Spurs opted to sell, with Eriksen having since struggled to make a telling impact in Italy.

“Christian is a very good friend of mine, I speak to him very often,” added Dier. “We had a very good relationship at Tottenham and spent a lot of time together as well outside of football.

“I know him very well, he is a fantastic player with so much quality – I think it is normal sometimes you go through a period of transition when you move to a different team, especially in a different country and also because of the circumstances with the coronavirus and everything that happened around that.

“With the impact it had in Italy it must have been a very difficult time for him at the same time as moving club and country.

“I think he is really happy, from what he has told me he is really happy in Italy and has settled really well.”