Pundit Noel Whelan has suggested that Tottenham midfielder Christian Eriksen could have an agreement with chairman Daniel Levy over him departing the club during the summer transfer window.
Eriksen has recently suggested that he could be looking for a new challenge this summer, after spending six-years at Tottenham where he has established himself as a crucial part of Mauricio Pochettino’s side, making 277 appearance for the North London club, as quoted by the Telegraph.
Whelan believes that Eriksen might have made a private agreement with Levy and Tottenham’s hierarchy which could see him be allowed to leave the club, with the Denmark international’s current £75,000-a-week deal [Spotrac.com] only having one more year left to run.
“Maybe there’s an agreement. He’s been at Tottenham a long time now so maybe he’s had a conversation with chairman and manager and feels he wants to try something different,” Whelan told Football Insider.
“When Real Madrid comes up it’s very difficult to turn that down. As a manager as well, despite wanting to keep players – look at Eden Hazard, a great servant for Chelsea but now the time has come that he needs a change.
“If the interest is true from Real Madrid then it’s going to be very hard as a player to turn down and not want to go to a club with that kind of stature. The way he’s gone about it his job at Tottenham and his service that he’s given the club, maybe there’s that gentleman’s agreement that we can’t stop you from giving it a shot at Real Madrid.”
OPINION
Whelan could be right to suggest that Eriksen might have an agreement in place with Tottenham that would allow him to leave this summer. Tottenham are unlikely to be wanting to let the Danish midfielder leave for nothing at the end of his deal next summer, and with Eriksen expressing his desire to take on a new challenge it does suggest that there might be an arrangement in place. However, Levy is a notoriously difficult figure to negotiate with and he will be wanting to maximise the value of Eriksen this summer, so any potential move away would still need to meet Tottenham’s valuation of the midfielder. Pochettino’s side would miss the presence of the Denmark international if he is to leave the club this summer, with Eriksen always adding that extra creativity and ability to produce something out of nothing. Those are qualities which Tottenham would have to replace this summer, if the midfielder leaves the club.