Eric Dier believes footballers should receive more support to deal with the riches on offer in the modern game.
With the Premier League awash with cash from its mega-money broadcast deal, some players are now earning more in a week than many people can earn in five years.
The England midfielder says he has sympathy with those players who find it difficult to cope with their new-found fame.
“It isn’t easy, people don’t realise how difficult it is for us to handle as a situation,” said Dier.
“At the end of the day we’re all the same, we’re normal human beings with a gift we’ve been give.
“It’s very difficult to handle all of those situations that happen in football with money and fame and so on.
“It’s not Ousmane Dembele’s fault that he’s good at football and someone (at Barcelona) is willing to pay £140million for him. It’s more to do with people way up the food chain.
“Everyone knows we are role models and we need to try to carry ourselves in the right way, because thousands or millions of kids are looking up to you in a sense.
“I think footballers in general as role models are really fantastic and I will say that for all the boys here (with England), I think everyone carries themselves really well.
“Obviously if you were to follow any 21-year-old or 22-year-old boy around for six months, I’m sure you’d see a lot of bad stuff.
“I think everyone has to realise that at the end of the day we are just young boys.
“In football at 25 you are seen as being in the middle or your career, but from a life point of view you are still a young boy, so boys are going to make mistakes.”
Add Sportslens to your Google News Feed!
