Eric Dier has admitted to having "a lot of regrets" while speaking about his "special" relationship with former Tottenham and England teammate Dele Alli.
In July last year, Alli opened up about his addiction to sleeping pills and revealed that he spent six weeks at a rehab centre in America to help with his mental health.
He also gave a heartbreaking insight into his childhood during an emotional sit down chat with Gary Neville.
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“It’s not something I have spoken about that much but there were a few incidents that give you an understanding," he said. "At six I was molested by my mum’s friend who was at the house at lot; my mum was an alcoholic. That happened at six.
"I was sent to Africa to learn discipline and then I was sent back. Seven, I started smoking, eight I started dealing drugs. An older person told me that they wouldn’t stop a kid on a bike, so I rode around with my football, and then underneath I’d have the drugs – that was eight.
“Eleven, I was hung off a bridge by a guy from the next estate, a man. Twelve, I was adopted – and from then, I was adopted by an amazing family, I couldn’t have asked for better people to do what they’d done for me. If God created people, it was them.”
Speaking on the latest episode of The Overlap – brought to you by Sky Bet – former Tottenham teammate Eric Dier has opened up on how he felt after watching the Alli interview with Gary Neville.
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"It’s difficult for me to talk about Dele," he said. "I speak to him all the time, every week, obviously it was just very difficult to watch. I don’t know if I’ve ever seen the whole video, I’ve seen bits of it but it’s difficult for me to watch.
"He said some nice things about me, but it works both ways. He’s also been a great friend to me. It annoys me a little because people after that interview would talk to me, but he’s been a great friend to me as well.
"Dele is a special person. I remember I was getting married and knew that he was in America, in rehab, and I spoke to him a few times and said there would be no problem if he couldn’t come and he was almost insulted.
"He came and was there for me, and that’s the type of friend he’s been to me."
Dier added: “I’m disappointed that I didn’t do more, in many situations that I look back on I wasn’t aware of the full picture and there’s a lot of things. I was that annoying older person, I would always be on his case so he would hide things from me, or tell me something but give just 20% of it.
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"I have a lot of regrets and there were certain times that I wish I did more.”
In the interview with former Manchester United defender Neville, Alli mentioned that Dier supported him throughout his time in North London.
When that was subject brought up during an interview in Singapore last year, Dier was visibly emotional as he reflected on his relationship with the former MK Dons midfielder.
"I don’t really like talking about it publicly because I don’t really feel like it’s my place," Dier said, before shedding a tear. "He’s been a great friend to me as well. He just has been...he’s just… sorry, I just need… I can’t speak."
Featured Image Credit: The Overlap/YouTubeTopics: Dele Alli, Eric Dier, Gary Neville, Tottenham Hotspur, Premier League