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Christian Eriksen has confirmed that he wants to leave Tottenham Hotspur this summer, per Ekstra Bladet.
What’s the word?
The playmaker has long been linked with Real Madrid and, following the Lilywhites' Champions League final defeat to Liverpool, he has finally admitted that he would be open to a move away from north London in the transfer window.
Eriksen played a key role in Spurs’ season, making 51 appearances in all competitions, but his contract expires next summer and he has shown no desire to commit to fresh terms.
He said: “I feel that I am at a stage of my career where I would like to try something new.
“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 also touted the idea of a move to Real Madrid, though he does not know if the Spanish club have expressed their interest.
He added: “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. And 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.”
The Guardian report that Eriksen could cost Real Madrid in the region of £130m should they attempt to extricate him from north London.
Can splash the cash
Spurs are set for a busy summer, by all accounts.
They have been linked with midfielders Giovani Lo Celso and Tanguy Ndombele along with Fulham’s Ryan Sessegnon, by the London Evening Standard, along with Celta Vigo’s Maxi Gomez.
To secure all four would cost in excess of £150m – Lo Celso has an £88m release clause while the deal for Ndombele has been touted as costing over £70m – and the money has to come from somewhere.
Pocketing over £100m for Eriksen would go a long way to kick-starting their business.
He may have done the club a favour, then, by fluttering his eyelashes at Zinedine Zidane’s men, as chairman Daniel Levy now has no excuse not to get his chequebook out.
The Spurs squad that took on Liverpool and lost was almost identical to the one that was pipped to the title by Leicester in 2016, and Eriksen's desire to leave may force the club to finally shake things up.