2022-23 Summer Transfer Information:　Verbal agreement! What does Christian Eriksen bring to United?

So this time, I will summarize the joining of Eriksen crisply. We wrote about the circumstances of the transfer, Eriksen’s career, his role at United and how he was hired!

Here’s today’s table of contents

(1) Background and career

On 4 July, Christian Eriksen verbally agreed to join United. He has a three-year contract until 2025 and is expected to sign this week for a medical check. Eriksen joined Brentford on 31 January last season. He has played 11 games in the Premier League, scoring one goal and four assists. I had a contract with Brentford until June 30, so it was a free transfer from July 1. There were rumours of Eriksen signing him at the end of the season, but at the request of manager Ten Hague, the club apparently approached Eriksen to sign him. Ten Hag himself is reported to have spoken with Eriksen.

Eriksen, who grew up in Odense’s youth ranks and made his professional debut with Ajax, has 32 goals and 65 assists in 163 appearances for Ajax. He has recorded 10 or more assists in three consecutive seasons since the 10-11 season. He was the driving force behind three consecutive league titles (Eriksen, by the way, is not working with coach Ten Hag). He played for the Spurs from the 13-14 season. He played 305 games, scoring 69 goals and 90 assists. He has scored 10 or more assists for four consecutive seasons since the 15-16 season, and finished second in the Premier League assists rankings in the 15-16 and 16-17 seasons. He joined Inter in the 19-20 season, scoring 8 goals and 3 assists in 60 games.

Denmark’s Eriksen was taken to hospital on 12 June 2021 after suffering a sudden cardiac arrest in the opening Euro 2020 group stage match against Finland, where he was resuscitated on the spot and then taken to hospital. After that, he regains consciousness, but is fitted with an implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD). In Italy, it is forbidden to play professional sports while wearing an ICD, and his contract with Inter has been terminated. While still independent, he trained at his old club Odense and Ajax. At this time, Ten Hag confirmed Eriksen’s style of play and it can be seen that it led to this acquisition.

(2) Role at United

Even though he is free, it is unusual to add Eriksen, who is now 30 years old, on a three-year contract. I get the impression that it is a reinforcement that has not been possible with United so far. However, personally, when the rumours of Eriksen came out, I thought, “It’s a perfect fit for United right now.” Experience in the Premiere League, being from Ajax, quality, hard work… None of this could be said to help United, which were on the verge of collapse.

Eriksen is the so-called No. 10 type and can both make games from deep positions and create chances between lines. Are. In the 17-18 season, he recorded 101 key passes. It was a good result for second place in the Premier League and fourth in the five major leagues in Europe. Eriksen has often been used at the bottom of the table, but he also played as a left midfielder during his time with Spurs and played in the inside half of a 4-1-4-1 at Brentford. Bruno has a lot to do with his position and role, but I think Eriksen is more versatile and has more certainty of play. As a team, we intend to use these two players well and improve the quality of our chance-making, but at the same time, I think we will also be able to help Bruno. Last season, Bruno came down to his own side very often to help with the build-up and defence. His dedication is impressive, but some see it as contributing to the decline in performance last season, and his real intention is to focus on attack.

Even though Eriksen is down the top, he has a very good ability to get down to his own half, pick up the ball and make games with his middle passes. Like Ajax, they have excellent positioning sense, can exercise a lot and work hard, and can be expected to improve the quality that is lacking in United’s midfield. And personally, what I expect the most is the set-pieces. The high accuracy of free kicks and corner kicks is one of Eriksen’s charms. United are without an absolute kicker. Eriksen is a specialist in this field. There is no doubt that it will improve the quality of United’s set-pieces.

(3) How to use Eriksen

With Eriksen’s signing, United will have three different top-downs of the type: Bruno, Eriksen and van de Beek. The formations that Coach The Hag will use will probably be 4-2-3-1 and 4-3-3. In the case of a 4-2-3-1, Bruno will be in charge of the basic top and bottom, and when Bruno is rested, Eriksen will come in. Eriksen should be tough to play twice a week for both his age and physicality. They may start from pinpoint positions, stabilize possession midway through the second half, or be used more as set-piece personnel.

However, the simultaneous appointment of Bruno and Eriksen is also a very likely option. There is also the idea of having Bruno at the bottom of the top and Eriksen on the left flank and using it as a double No. 10 system at the same time. Sancho on the right, Ronaldo on top, or Rashford, you’ll have a phenomenal front! (lol) It’s the same idea as Pogba’s approach, but if you do it with Ten Hag’s pass-and-move style, it’s going to be something completely different. We should see more dynamic and organizational collaboration.

In addition, it is an option that I would like to see simultaneous appointment with van de Beek. There is also a 4-2-3-1 with Van de Beek at the bottom of the top and Eriksen on the left, but if you use these two guys at the same time, you can use a 4-3-3 inside half. I think it is better to use it in . Both of them have a lot of momentum and excellent positioning, so you can expect them to contribute to the build-up and respond when they are countered. However, in that case, I would like to put a player with defensive ability at the anchor … There is also the idea of using Frenkie de Jong as an anchor, which is rumored to be a win, but this is only after establishing possession as a team.

In this way, joining Eriksen gives you more options. It may be a bit of an exaggeration to say that Pogba and Lingard and Mata will fill the void, but I think the addition of Eriksen, who can choose the play required while looking at the balance of the team, is quite large. Coach Ten Hag should have a solid way of using Eriksen in his own right. That’s why it’s a three-year contract. It’s not a “trial” but proof that Eriksen is also a key player in the title recapture.

Thank you for reading until the end!