Gareth Southgate has welcomed Tottenham defender Eric Dier back into the England U21 squad with open arms.
?Dier opted out of the Young Lions side back in November in order to focus on training with his club which promoted plenty of criticism.
?Despite the episode though, manager Southgate has revealed that Dier has made himself available for the England U21 squad once again while expressing his delight at being able to welcome back the young defender into the fold.
?Southgate said: "Eric felt he needed to go away and work on his game - he wanted to establish himself at centre back and he's done that which is great credit to him.
?"I did speak to him before this squad because I wanted to check he wanted to be a part of it but he said all along it was a temporary thing and he needed more time to work on his game and he's delighted to be back in the fray."?
