Maybe it’s just part of getting old, your game time declining and younger players nicking your minutes. And, after over a decade playing at the top level, the Manchester United man – by his own admission – feels ‘incredibly old’ these days.
That may have something to do with the fact that he has been supplanted in Erik ten Hag‘s starting XI by a man 13 years his junior. A man who was only halfway through primary school when his Manchester United team-mate first arrived in English football.
Christian Eriksen, while frustrated with his backseat role under Ten Hag in 2023/24, is self-aware enough to realise why he has lost his spot to Kobbie Mainoo.
But, still, the former Tottenham Hotspur, Ajax and Inter Milan playmaker is understandably a little unsettled; Mainoo’s emergence and his new-found place on the substitute’s bench a reminder that the leaves may be turning yellow as Eriksen enters the autumn days of his career.
Manchester United must make Christian Eriksen call
“For me, the season has been a little different to other seasons,” the 32-year-old tells TV2. “It has been a slightly different role. It’s new to me, but it’s also new to the outside world.
“It is clear, in relation to how people talk (about me).”
Eriksen started 25 Premier League games during his and Ten Hag’s first season at Old Trafford but that number fell by more than half during 2023/24.
For the Denmark international, a benchwarming role is always frustrating, no matter your age.
“I was also a bit lucky that I didn’t sit on the bench so much when I was younger. But I did it once in a while. It’s never fun, that’s for sure,” Eriksen adds.
“Personally, you always want to be the one who is chosen first in the team. Sometimes the coach looks the other way. But then I play for United.
“There is just a battle for places, because there are a lot of good players.”
Old Trafford exodus begins with Varane and Martial
Eriksen is, perhaps, a little fortunate that he featured as much as he did. Had Mason Mount not missed the majority of 2023/24 through injury, the free transfer arrival from Brentford would have found himself even further down Ten Hag’s pecking order.
Man United confirmed via their official website on Wednesday morning that Raphael Varane and Anthony Martial would be leaving Old Trafford when their contracts expire in July. It is expected that 30-somethings Eriksen and Casemiro have also donned that iconic red shirt for the final time, with the future of fellow midfielder Sofyan Amrabat also yet to be decided.
Eriksen did, at least, retain his place in the Denmark squad for Euro 2024. Though compatriot Thomas Gravesen has his concerns about relying upon a player heading into the summer a little undercooked.
“Is he at 80 per cent? Or is he at 70 per cent? Or 50? Or 20!?,” a worried Gravesen, once of Real Madrid, Everton and Celtic, tells Tipsbladet. “We have no idea, because he doesn’t play.
“And that’s a problem. Christian Eriksen at top level is an exceptional player. But who is he at the moment?”