Bees Fans Hopeful as Eriksen Decision Looms
Playing time and family could be critical in Dane's choice
Some unforgettable moments in his short time at the club so far. Picture: Brentford FC
There is an increasing hope among Brentford FC supporters that Christian Eriksen may, after all, decide to stay at the club.
It was widely assumed that the Dane, who is generally recognised as one of the world's best players, would move on to a club playing in the Champions League, on the expiry of his six month contract with Brentford.
The hot favourites to sign the 30-year-old were Tottenham Hotspur with their manager Antonio Conte having worked with Eriksen before at Inter Milan and being an ardent admirer of the player. A London based club would also allow his young family to remain in the capital with reports suggesting his wife is reluctant to move again. The couple were spotted last month visiting schools in the Chiswick area.
There is a similar connection with Erik Ten Hag, the new manager of Manchester United, who was familiar with Eriksen from his time at Ajax and he trained with the club in Amsterdam before signing the contract with Brentford. The Manchester club has seen a big clear out of midfield players including Paul Pogba and Juan Mata, which was widely seen as creating a potential vacancy.
However, reports on Sky suggest that sources within Spurs are indicating that the manager is not looking to proceed with the signing as his tactics wouldn't easily incorporate a player of Eriksen's type and the club have already bought a number of midfielders since the end of the season.
As well as the geographical considerations against a move to United, it is understood that Eriksen has concerns about the amount of game time he would get at the club. He has played just ten league games since his cardiac arrest at the Euros and wants to get a much time on the pitch as possible in advance of the World Cup in Qatar this November. The Manchester club will have a long roster of players and there would be no guarantee that a player, even of Eriksen's calibre, would be an automatic starter.
At Brentford, on the other hand, he would be picked to play every game he wanted to. This could more than outweigh the attraction of the much higher wages that the Bees could offer.
He has a close relationship with the Brentford manager, fellow Dane, Thomas Frank, and will be grateful to him for the opportunity he gave to restart his career. He is reported to be on holiday at the moment but has promised Frank a phone call as soon as he made a decision with the latter saying this will be in the next two weeks.
One suggestion that has been put forward is that Eriksen may choose to sign another six month contract extension with Brentford. This would see him through to the end of the World Cup and would mean he would be available to play for a club in the Champions League for the rest of the season.
Brentford FC seem to remain optimistic with Eriksen replica home kits still being prominently featured on the club website.
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June 24, 2022