Fresh report reveals how Man Utd blew Tottenham out of the water in race to sign Christian Eriksen
A fresh report has revealed how Manchester United pulled out all the stops to beat Premier League rivals to the signing of midfielder Christian Eriksen this summer.
The Red Devils made the Denmark international their second signing of the summer transfer window when he joined on a free transfer after his spell at Brentford came to an end.
While the Bees were keen on keeping the 30-year-old, they were unable to equal the financial packages on offer from United and Spurs.
That, in turn, led to a straight fight between the two long-time top-flight rivals. However, it was the Red Devils who came out on top.
And now a report from Football Insider has revealed how they managed to convince Eriksen to sign.
The report states that the Old Trafford side offered Eriksen a staggering deal worth £200,000-a-week, as well as a £12million signing-on fee.
That offer completely derailed Tottenham’s hopes of bringing back their club legend.
Indeed, United will end up paying £43m across the three years of his contract agreement. That includes the signing-on fee as well as a salary worth more than £10m-a-year.
Tottenham could not compete with United offer
Spurs had no choice but to pull out of the race, as they were unwilling to offer those sorts of figures.
Eriksen, who has made a remarkable recovery from the cardiac arrest he suffered at Euro 2020, has started every Red Devils game so far.
Playing alongside Scott McTominay in central midfield, the Dane has yet to reach his top standards as yet.
However, he is expected to line up against league leaders Arsenal on Sunday, as United look to make it four wins on the bounce.
There is a chance though that Ten Hag opts to bring in fellow summer signing Casemiro against the Gunners.
The Brazilian has been introduced off the bench so far. However, he could be brought in to bolster’s United midfield against the in-form Gunners.
It remains to be seen if that is at the expense of Eriksen or Scott McTominay, who has already picked up three yellow cards this season.
Eriksen always a better fit at United than Spurs
A return for Eriksen to Tottenham always looked a more of a sentimental signing than Conte actually wanting him on board.
Yes, the Italian did bring the Denmark star to Inter Milan and won the title with him. However, Eriksen was not always first choice at the San Siro and that would have likely been the same in north London.
Conte does not play with a traditional No.10 and it’s highly unlikely he would have trusted Eriksen in a midfield two, as Ten Hag has done at Old Trafford.
Where Eriksen would have been a decent option would have been in the Champions League, where the high-pressing style of football is not in evidence as much.
Ten Hag still has to get the best out of the experienced star though and finding him the right partner in his engine room is key.
It may just be that playing experienced duo Camesmiro and Eriksen together is that answer.
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