Eric Dier could not hide his happiness as the former Tottenham star revelled in dumping Arsenal out of the Champions League.
Dier starred as Bayern Munich edged past Mikel Arteta’s side 1-0, to book their place in the Champions League semi-final against Real Madrid.
Joshua Kimmich was the hero on the night, heading a 63rd-minute winner to end the Gunner’s hopes of lifting the trophy for the first time.
Dier, who joined Bayern on loan from Spurs in January, was named man-of-the-match as Arsenal struggled to breach the hosts’ dogged backline.
The 30-year-old appears to be settling in well in Bavaria and did not hide his glee in getting one over his old foes, during a post-match interview.
Dier was asked whether playing Arsenal sparked any added motivation ahead of the game and despite his limited response, the England International was all smiles.
“Yeah it was nice,” Dier told Sky Sports and repeated multiple times. “It was nice, it was nice, it was nice to knock them out to be honest.”
The interview would have no doubt pleased Tottenham fans knowing two players deeply connected to the club combined in ending the Gunners’ Champions League dreams.
Dier is set to leave this summer but spent nine-and-a-half years at Spurs after arriving from Sporting CP and went on to make 365 appearances for the north London side.
He found game time hard to come by after the appointment of manager Ange Postecoglou last summer and an initial loan switch to Bayern handed him the opportunity to reignite his career alongside ex-Spurs teammate Harry Kane.
Ex-Tottenham star Dier could not hide his happiness at dumping Arsenal out of the Champions League[/caption]
But the pair’s heroics could prove to be Tottenham’s downfall due to England’s faltering coefficient.
Spurs are in the running to qualify for the top four and a place in next season’s newly-structured Champions League.
However, their fight for fourth place must see them leapfrog Aston Villa, with fifth place now unlikely to be enough to claim Champions League football next term.
Italy lead the way in the coefficient with Germany in the all-important second spot after Arsenal and Manchester City’s European exits this week.
The Premier League has been dealt a further blow by Bayern and Borussia Dortmund’s advancement to the Champions League semi-final whilst newly-crowned Bundesliga winners Bayer Leverkusen hold a 2-0 advantage over West Ham heading into Thursday’s Europa League quarter-final second leg.