It is looking more and more likely that Tottenham Hotspur will be parting company with their Danish attacking midfielder, Christian Eriksen, during the summer. Many people have linked Leicester’s James Maddison as a likely replacement, but Aston Villa’s Jack Grealish would also make a great swap.
Eriksen is now 27 years old and is approaching the autumn of his career. Having said that, he is now in his prime and playing some of the best football of his career. He has been with Spurs since August 2011.
Although he has been voted Tottenham Hotspur Player of the Year twice (2013/2014 and 2017/2017) and won the Danish Footballer of the Year Award five times, he has yet to win any major silverware with the North Londoners. After a poor result against Ajax in their home leg of the Champions League semi-final, it looks as though this season will also end trophy-less for him.
With Eriksen wanting to have something to show for what has been a sparkling career so far, now is the time for him to consider moving on. Reportedly, Zinedine Zidane would like to sign him for Real Madrid, as would Ole Gunnar Solskjaer for Manchester United. But rumour has it that the Dane has already verbally agreed to join Los Blancos, so watch this space.
If Eriksen does depart, it will leave a big hole in Tottenham’s midfield and although Dele Ali and Harry Winks are both very capable (if of course, they both stay) they still need another playmaker and Grealish could well fit the bill. Chris Waddle is of the opinion that Eriksen is irreplaceable, but the truth of the matter is that it’s just finding the right player.
Twenty three year-old Grealish is currently with Aston Villa and many pundits rate him as the best player in the Championship. Although he is loyal to Villa, a move to a big club like Tottenham Hotspur could well put temptation in his path.
The Villa are currently in fifth place in the Championship and will be fighting in the playoffs for promotion to the Premiership next season. Grealish is vital to their hopes and if they do secure promotion, they will want to keep him to boost their chances of staying up.
However, if Pochettino does come knocking on behalf of Tottenham, he is said to be considering offering £35-million. It’s a lot of money which Dean Smith could put to good use in strengthening Villa’s squad for their bid to stay up if they do win promotion.
There is no doubt that Grealish would fit in with Spurs’ style of play, and at 23 he would be a great investment. From his own point of view, he would have a shot at playing on the biggest stage against the cream of European football. That is of course if Tottenham do hang on to fourth place in the table, which it does look as though they will.
Verdict
If Eriksen does go, which looks increasingly likely, Grealish would be a like for like replacement with huge potential. Spurs could even consider offering even more than the £35M being talked about to secure the deal. There is no doubt that he would fit in nicely and strengthen Spurs bid for silverware next season.