- Planet Sport writer
- 29 July 2024
Christian Eriksen: Man Utd's pre-season travel more manageable this year
Christian Eriksen has shared his thoughts on Manchester United's pre-season tour, noting a significant shift in approach compared to last year.
Eriksen started his career as a youngster with hometown club Middelfart G&BK before moving on to OB and then Dutch giants Ajax.
After joining Ajax's ranks in 2008, he made his first team breakthrough in 2010 and promptly established himself as an integral part of the team.
In 2013, Eriksen signed for Tottenham Hotspur, where he enjoyed seven successful years. He helped Spurs reach the final of the 2018/19 UEFA Champions League, where they lost 2-0 to Liverpool.
In 2020, Eriksen signed for Inter Milan, where he played a part in the club winning their first Serie A title in 11 years in the 2020/21 season under Antonio Conte.
At the delayed Euro 2020 tournament, which kicked off in June 2021, Eriksen suffered cardiac arrest while playing for Denmark. He was swiftly and successfully attended to before being moved to hospital where his condition thankfully stabilised.
Inter Milan were forced to release him from his contract due to medical regulations in Serie A. However, after proving his fitness, Eriksen joined Premier League side Brentford on a six month contract in January 2022.
During his short stay at Brentford, he help the Bees beat Chelsea for the first time since 1939, and in 11 games, he scored once and made four assists.
In July 2022, he joined Manchester United on a three-year deal.
Christian Eriksen and Ajax
Eriksen signed a two-and-a-half-year contract with Ajax in October 2008.
He made his breakthrough in the Ajax first team during the 2009/10 season and swiftly became a regular in the side. He earned high praise from manager Martin Jol.
"He is a player in the same tradition as Rafael van der Vaart or Wesley Sneijder - the same type of player, a sort of playmaker. There is depth to his game. He reads the game well, he's capable of feeding the attackers, he is skilful. He is a player who will turn out to be either very good or even great," said Jol when he was signed.
Eriksen won Eredivisie titles with Ajax in 2010/11, 2011/12 and 2012/13. He was an important influence in the No. 10 role.
In all competitions, Eriksen played 162 matches for Ajax's first team, scoring 32 goals.
Christian Eriksen and Tottenham Hotspur
On August 30, 2013, Eriksen signed for Tottenham Hotspur, then under the guidance of Portuguese manager Andre Villas-Boas, for a reported transfer fee of £11million.
Eriksen was consistently impressive for Spurs, but he was one of a raft of new signings to counteract the departure of Gareth Bale to Real Madrid, which had been on the horizon for some time. Unfortunately for Villas-Boas, many of his new signings did not settle at Spurs as seamlessly as Eriksen did.
Villas-Boas lost his job midway through the season and was replaced briefly by Tim Sherwood. He was unable to secure UEFA Champions League football for the north London club.
Mauricio Pochettino took over as Spurs boss ahead of the 2014/15 season. There were promising signs early in his reign, including a 5-3 win over eventual champions Chelsea on January 1, 2015. However, Spurs lost the League Cup final 2-0 to the same opponents and finished fifth in the Premier League.
In 2015/16, Spurs were in the title race, but ultimately finished third behind Leicester City and Arsenal, with their title hopes fading in a 2-2 draw to Chelsea.
The 2016/17 season saw Spurs finish second in the Premier League, behind Antonio Conte's Chelsea. Eriksen remained an important part of the team.
In 2017/18, Eriksen had his most prolific season in a Tottenham shirt, scoring 14 goals in all competitions as Spurs qualified for the UEFA Champions League despite having to play their home matches at Wembley Stadium as they transitioned between old home ground White Hart Lane and the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Spurs finally moved into their new ground near the end of the 2018/19 season. This coincided with a remarkable run to the UEFA Champions League final, which saw them beat Eriksen's former club, Ajax, in the semi-finals. However, they lost 2-0 to Liverpool in the final.
Eriksen's future at the club was the subject of much speculation throughout the 2019/20 season.
"I feel that I am at a stage of my career where I would like to try something new," Eriksen told the Danish newspaper, Ekstra Bladet, following the conclusion of the 2018/19 campaign.
After a poor start to the 2019/20 season, Pochettino was replaced by Jose Mourinho, who utilised Eriksen until he joined Inter Milan for £23million at the end of January 2020.
Eriksen made a total of 305 appearances for Tottenham, scoring 69 goals.
Christian Eriksen and Inter Milan
Eriksen joined Antonio Conte's Inter Milan midway through the 2019/20 season, but struggled to truly settle in at the Nerazzurri. Inter narrowly lost the Serie A title race to Juventus that season. They made the final of the UEFA Europa League, which they lost 3-2 to Sevilla.
In 2020/21, Inter won Serie A for the first time since 2010. Despite a widely perceived poor start to life in Italy, Eriksen made 60 appearances in his first season-and-a-half at the club and scored eight goals.
Following his recovery from his cardiac arrest at Euro 2020, Inter Milan terminated his contract in December 2021 as he was not permitted to play in Serie A due to having a defibrillator fitted.
The Premier League doesn't carry the same rules as Serie A and Brentford manager Thomas Frank persuaded Eriksen to join the small Danish enclave at the club on a free transfer in January 2022.
After impressing at Brentford, Erik ten Hag made the 30-year-old one of his first new signings at Manchester United in July 2022.
Christian Eriksen and Denmark national team
Eriksen was the youngest player at the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa, where his Denmark were eliminated at the group stage.
At the 2018 FIFA World Cup, Denmark progressed to the round of 16, where they were eliminated by Croatia.
Eriksen made his 100th appearance for Denmark in the 2020/21 UEFA Nations League, scoring a penalty against England.
At Euro 2020, Eriksen collapsed on the pitch as he received a throw-in during Denmark's group stage match against Finland.
Referee Anthony Taylor was quick to stop the match, although it controversially later continued and Finland won 1-0. The Danish national team doctor subsequently confirmed that Eriksen suffered a cardiac arrest. Thankfully, quick-acting medics were able to save his life.
After returning to domestic football with Brentford, Eriksen found his way back to the international stage scoring in a 4-2 friendly defeat to the Netherlands in March 2022.
Personal life
Eriksen has two children with girlfriend Sabrina Kvist Jensen, who rose to prominence following his cardiac arrest at Euro 2020.
His younger sister, Louise Eriksen, also plays soccer.
Christian Eriksen net worth
Christian Eriksen is reportedly on around £150,000 a week at Manchester United and has a net worth of around $25million.
