England boss Roy Hodgson admits he wanted Tottenham duo Eric Dier and Harry Kane to play less this season

Key men: Dier and Kane have played regularly for Spurs this term
Mike Hewitt/Getty Images
Sam Long18 May 2016

England manager Roy Hodgson has admitted he would have liked Eric Dier and Harry Kane to play 'a few less' games for Tottenham this season.

The Spurs duo were included in Hodgson's provisional Euro 2016 squad earlier this week and are expected to be central to the Three Lions' campaign in France this summer.

But both Dier and Kane have already endured energy-sapping campaigns at club level, having made 37 and 38 top-flight appearances for Mauricio Pochettino's side this term.

And although Hodgson has shown a willingness to pick players short of game time, such as Jack Wilshere and Fabian Delph, the Croydon-born manager is adamant he would have preferred the Tottenham pair to have played less.

Tottenham 2015/16 season Player Ratings

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"Would I have liked Jamie Vardy, Harry Kane, Eric Dier to have played a few less games, and Chris Smalling to have had a bit of a rest at some stage of the season? Yes, I would.

"Would I have liked him [Jack Wilshere] to have actually been playing week-in, week-out for the Arsenal? Of course I would," Hodgson added.

Kane's case for a starting role in France is likely to be strengthened by the fact he finished the season as the Premier League's top scorer with a tally of 25 goals.

Dier, meanwhile, began the season as a centre back at White Hart Lane but has been converted into a central midfielder by Pochettino, with great success.

Dier is competing for a place in the centre of the park with the likes of Leicester's Danny Drinkwater but Hodgson has also hinted he could ask the versatile 22-year-old to drop back into defence if required.

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