Tottenham issue Dier warning to United about Eric

Tottenham will rebuff any offers from Manchester United for their midfielder Eric Dier, a source close to the club has told Yahoo Sport UK.

United have had initial approaches for England international Dier rejected by Tottenham, yet fresh reports in the UK media suggest the Old Trafford club are preparing a renewed bid of £60m in a bid to land the utility player who is believed to be on a list of first choice targets for boss Jose Mourinho.

Dier started 34 Premier League games for Tottenham last season, being used in a variety of positions by boss Mauricio Pochettino as he played games at centre-back, full-back and in midfield.

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Mourinho is believed to see Dier as a potential long-term replacement for the veteran Michael Carrick in his midfield line-up, with the kind of offers United are reported to have made confirming their desire to land the player.

Yet after selling Kyle Walker to Premier League rivals Manchester City last week, Spurs are determined to resolutely resist any United offers to sign Dier, despite suggestions that 23-year-old who can also slot into a defensive role would be open to the prospect of a move to Manchester.

Tottenham paid just £4m to sign Dier from Sporting Lisbon in the summer of 2014, with his solid performances for club and country seeing his stock rise considerably in the last three years.

Yet Spurs are eager to ensure they are not viewed as a club willing to sell their top players – especially to domestic rivals – and will endeavour to ensure they make a stance over Dier.

Meanwhile, Spurs insiders remain hopeful that they will convince centre-back Toby Alderweireld to sign a new contract this summer, despite failure to reach a breakthrough with the player’s agent during an initial round of talks.

Alderweireld’s advisers are believed to be demanding a new deal that will put the commanding centre-back on par with Hugo Lloris and Harry Kane as the top earner at Tottenham, with Manchester City among the clubs monitoring the situation as they look to add to their defensive options.

In recent days Spurs have brief key media contacts that they are not interested in Porto right-back Ricardo Pereira or Swansea’s promising young English central defender Alfie Mawson.