Tuesday 16 October 2018 23:44, UK
Sam Allardyce has backtracked over his belief that England midfielder Eric Dier is "as good as Sergio Busquets" following England's 3-2 win over Spain.
The Tottenham man was hailed by Allardyce for his performance during Monday night's memorable UEFA Nations League victory in Seville.
Busquets has won seven La Liga titles and three Champions League crowns with Barcelona, as well as the World Cup and European Championships with his country - but Allardyce claimed earlier on Tuesday that Dier deserves more praise for the role he undertakes.
Speaking on The Debate, however, the former England manager moved to clarify his viewpoint, saying: "I slipped up a little bit, but on the night he was better than him.
"In career terms, he's not. But what I was doing was sticking up for Dier, after the amount of stick he's been getting.
"People saying he's not good enough for England, people saying he shouldn't be playing. There's been a lot of negative comments in the press."
The Tottenham midfielder has had a good week for England, with Southgate utilising him in his new-look 4-3-3 formation.
Dier has the versatility to drop back into defence when England are in possession, but the 24-year-old set the tone for the evening in Seville on Monday when he was booked for a crunching challenge on Sergio Ramos after 11 minutes in Spain's own penalty area.
Allardyce was impressed with how Dier performed in Jordan Henderson's absence, adding: "He plays it simple and sits in the right positions.
"He made a great tackle [on Ramos]. That set a great standard for England on the night.
"In all fairness, you're not allowed to take the ball and the man anymore, but it was a good challenge to get everyone in the right frame of mind, like a good pass, a good header or a good shot. It put England on the front foot."
Liam Rosenior said: "That tackle from a tactical point of view summed up England's performance."
