Christian Eriksen says he is ready to leave Tottenham for new challenge
Christian Eriksen has confirmed the worst kept secret at Tottenham: that he wants to take on a new challenge at another club this summer. The 27-yearold Denmark midfielder, who has been at Spurs since 2013, has one year to run on his current contract and has shown no inclination to renew for another cycle in north London.
Spurs cannot afford to allow him to run down his deal and leave as a free agent next summer, given his high value at arguably the peak of his career and the fact they have repayments to make on their new stadium. Consequently, they have let it be known in recent weeks he would be available at a price, albeit an extremely high one.
Daniel Levy, the chairman, has quoted £130m for him, which might seem like wishful thinking but it offers an impression of where he is drawing the lines for negotiations. Eriksen has repeatedly refused to discuss his next move with reporters and last week, in the buildup to Spurs’ Champions League final against Liverpool, which they lost 2-0, he turned on his heel and left one interview when asked about his future.
“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. “I have the deepest respect for everything that is happening at Tottenham and it would not be something negative to stay. But I have also said that I would like to try something new.
“I hope that something will be decided this summer. That is the plan. In football you never know when there could be a decision like that. It could be at any point. The best thing is always for it to happen quickly but in football things take time.”
Eriksen has been heavily linked with a move to Real Madrid, who are looking to add marquee signings this summer for Zinedine Zidane after a desperately disappointing season.
“Real Madrid is a step up but then it would take Real Madrid picking up the phone and making contact with Tottenham and say that they want Christian,” Eriksen said. “And that they haven’t done as far as I know.
“It all depends on Daniel Levy and there has to be another club too. Or I will sit down myself at the table and negotiate a new contract. You can’t set a date yourself. There aren’t many boxes that Tottenham don’t tick so if I have to move away, it would have to be a step up.”
Eriksen was asked whether he would seek to run down his contract. “That is difficult to say,” he replied. “It depends on the possibilities. If there are no exciting offers why shouldn’t I stay at Tottenham? If I then sign a new contract depends on the conditions.”
Mauricio Pochettino is currently in talks with Levy to set the basis for what the manager has described as the club’s next chapter. He wants to refresh his squad in order to continue the year-onyear improvement he has overseen and, to do that, he needs investment. He knows, however, that funds will remain tight.
Pochettino joked last week that Levy had lightened up as a person but “it’s not that he’s going to give us more money now – this area is not going to change, he’s going to be strong.” As such, it is likely that Pochettino will have to generate funds via the sale of players, which makes Eriksen’s situation pivotal to the club’s summer plans.
Eriksen’s agent, Martin Schoots, was quoted in the Evening Standard: “Last season there were three clubs – two English and one foreign – interested in paying a huge amount to Spurs. For the club it was than a no-go area and for Christian, not a must-have. I have the impression we are in a new situation now.”