Tottenham Hotspur were bounced from the FA Cup tonight, in a fifth round clash that saw them lose on penalty kicks to Norwich City, but it was a match that will be remembered much more for what happened off the pitch in the stands. Spurs midfielder Eric Dier, angered by something a supporter of his own team said about/to his little brother, left the field of play to confront the match attendee.
Photos and videos of the incident heavily circulated online, and after the match manager Jose Mourinho explained what had happened. Mourinho said he understood why Eric Dier did what he did, but he couldn’t condone his actions.
Eric Dier just came into the stand and had a fight with fan next to me ? pic.twitter.com/nMGVcDWegX
— Jascha Selby (@jselby123) March 4, 2020
“This person insulted Eric, this family was there. The young brother was not happy with the situation and then Eric, I repeat did what we professionals cannot do, but did something that probably we would do,” Mourinho said.
“I don’t think that belongs to the game. The game was a fantastic representation of the FA Cup, but I cannot run away from the question. I think Eric Dier did what we as professionals cannot do but when someone insults you and your family is involved, especially your young brother.
“If the club discipline Eric Dier I would not agree with it, but what he did was wrong.”
Originally, it was thought that this incident was triggered by the person in the stands racially abusing a player, but that is a narrative that hasn’t been affirmed. In response to this line of questioning, Mourinho responded: “I cannot say, I don’t know. I just know that the reaction of Eric was based on his brother, didn’t like what was happening there. I cannot go in that direction with these details.”
https://twitter.com/queercatholic1/status/1235332114452828162
Mourinho is completely correct- as a professional you have to be able to turn away and control yourself from becoming involved in ugly incidents like these. That’s why they pay you the big bucks, to be a professional. But again, as Mourinho said, it’s only human nature, base instincts, to respond as Eric Dier did here.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank.net, which is partnered with News Now. Banks, the author of “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry,” regularly appears on WGN CLTV and co-hosts the “Let’s Get Weird, Sports” podcast on SB Nation.
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