Two former Cheltenham residents will be getting reading for this summer’s FIFA World Cup in Russia with Stoke City’s Jack Butland and Tottenham Hotspur’s Eric Dier being called up to the 23-man England World Cup squad.
Goalkeeper Butland had two consecutive loans spells in 2011 and 2012 with Cheltenham Town with the first being a month’s loan to gain experience of first-team football. He went straight into the starting eleven to make his Football League debut at home to Macclesfield Town on 10 September 2011, displacing Scott Brown who had made 107 consecutive starts for the club. Butland was barely called upon as Cheltenham won the match 2–0.
While still out on loan, Butland signed a new contract with Championship side Birmingham City until June 2015. The initial month was later extended by a further two months, to begin after his return from under-21 duty in mid-October. Butland was short-listed for November’s League Two Player of the Month award and finished his loan spell with seven clean sheets from his twelve appearances.
In February 2012, Butland rejoined Cheltenham on a youth loan until the end of the season. He once again went straight into the starting eleven, and kept a clean sheet against AFC Wimbledon to help maintain Cheltenham in the automatic promotion positions. However, after Birmingham’s first-choice goalkeeper, Boaz Myhill, injured his thumb, Butland was recalled by his parent club with three matches remaining in the regular season. Over his two spells with Cheltenham, he conceded 26 goals from 24 League Two appearances, and was regularly scouted by bigger clubs; the Daily Telegraph reported that “no fewer than 52 scouts” had watched him at one match.
Fast-forward six years and Butland finds himself recently relegated with Stoke City after a £3.5m move to the Potters back in 2013 but has many suitors vying for his signature, many of whom remain in the Premier League. The 25 year-old has also become a fully-fledged England international making 7 appearances for the Three Lions.
Butland’s England compatriot Eric Dier meanwhile, was actually born in Cheltenham and lived in the area until the age of 7, before moving to Portugal after his mother was offered a job running the hospitality programme at UEFA Euro 2004.
Dier’s footballing ability was initially spotted by his P.E. teacher Miguel Silva, who referred him to Sporting’s scouts at the age of eight. Dier signed professional terms with Sporting in April 2010. The Portuguese club beat Arsenal, Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur to his signature, who tried to entice the defender back to England.
In January 2011, Dier agreed to join Everton on loan until 30 June. Sporting CP’s official website stated that the loan was “an opportunity for the athlete to grow in a more competitive and demanding environment.” Dier represented Everton U18’s ten times during his loan spell and won the 2010–11 U18 Premier League with the team. Dier encountered difficulties resettling into English life, but in the summer of 2011, he extended his loan stay in the Everton academy for an additional 12 months.
After two years playing in Portugal with Sporting Lisbon, Dier would return to his home nation; joining Tottenham Hotspur in a £4 million transfer on a five-year contract. The centre-back/centre-midfielder has gone on to play 135 games for Spurs and 25 England caps and looks to help his country for their first World Cup glory in over 60 years.
