Eric Dier was linked with a move to Manchester United in the summer transfer window (Picture: Getty)

Manchester United boss Jose Mourinho has risked the wrath of Mauricio Pochettino by heaping praise on Tottenham star Eric Dier once again.

Dier, 23, was heavily linked with a move to United in the summer but the Red Devils instead brought Nemanja Matic to Old Trafford for a fee of around £40million ahead of the 2017/18 campaign.

Mourinho has made no secret of his admiration for Dier and was even criticised by Pochettino for approaching the England star after Spurs’ defeat at Old Trafford in December 2016.

Following this weekend’s victory over the north London club, Mourinho suggested Dier was among the best defenders in world football.

‘I don’t think he’s quiet at all,’ Mourinho replied when asked about Romelu Lukaku’s recent contribution in the lead-up to United’s encounter with Benfica.

Jose Mourinho is a not-so-secret admirer of the England international (Picture: Getty)

‘Ask [Toby] Alderweireld, [Jan] Vertonghen and Dier if he was quiet and they are some of the best in football.

‘Scoring goals and not scoring goals is what, in the end, some people analyse but he’s not quiet at all.’

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Earlier this month, Pochettino slammed Mourinho for putting Dier in a ‘compromising’ position.

He wrote in The Daily Mail: ‘I found out that United have made an approach and the player is being destabilised.

‘His people have been putting pressure on him, although United are not promising anything.

‘Mourinho and I had finished our interviews at Old Trafford [in December 2016] and the players were doing their warm-down on the pitch.

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‘When Jose was done with the press, he stood by the entrance to the tunnel and regarded the returning players.

‘He greeted Moussa Sissoko and hugged Dier. They passed by me en route to the dressing rooms, laughing, speaking in Portuguese.

‘Maybe it is a common Mourinho tactic, but he put Eric in a compromising position. You cannot do that after a defeat.

‘Are you friends with Mourinho?’ I asked him. ‘No, but I’ve known him a long time, from my time in Portugal… one of his godsons coached me. He always says hello.’

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