OFFICIAL: Brentford announce signing of Christian Eriksen

 

Brentford FC have announced the signing of Denmark international midfield player, Christian Eriksen, subject to international clearance. The 29-year-old signed his contract after completing a medical assessment. He has signed until the end of the 2021/22 season...

Christian who has been playing at the top level of European football for more than a decade, suffered a cardiac arrest while playing for Denmark at Euro 2020. The midfielder was released by Inter Milan last month because Italian rules do not allow someone to play with an ICD (implantable cardioverter-defibrillator)

He excelled in the Premier League with Tottenham Hotspur and was part of the squad at Internazionale that won Serie A last season. Christian played 26 games for Inter as the Milan side won the Italian top flight for the first time in 11 years.

Christian has also been a mainstay of the Denmark team for more than a decade. He has earned 109 caps and scored 36 goals. His last appearance was against Finland in a UEFA European Championship match in Copenhagen in June, during which Christian suffered a cardiac arrest. He has been out of the game for the last seven months.

 Christian played for Denmark’s Under-17 side when Thomas was coach of that group. He progressed quickly through the international ranks, making his full debut for Denmark aged 18.

Brentford head coach, Thomas Frank said: 

“I am looking forward to working with Christian again. It has been a while since I last coached him, and a lot has happened since then. Christian was 16 at the time and has become one of the best midfield players to appear in the Premier League. He has also won trophies all over Europe and become the star of the Danish national team.

“We have taken an unbelievable opportunity to bring a World Class player to Brentford. He hasn’t trained with a team for seven months but has done a lot of work on his own. He is fit but we will need to get him match fit and I am looking forward to seeing him work with the players and staff to get back towards his highest level.

“At his best, Christian has the ability to dictate games of football. He can find the right passes and is a goal threat. He also has very, very good set piece delivery, both from corners and direct free kicks. He is a player you can find with the ball, and he will come up with a solution to the problem in front of him. Christian will also bring experience of top level football to the Club. I expect him to have an impact in the dressing room and at the Training Ground.

Discussing the process of signing Christian, Phil Giles, Brentford Director of Football, said: 

“We first discussed the possibility of Christian joining Brentford when we heard that he would be leaving Inter. It is fantastic that he is now with us.

“Naturally the process of signing Christian was more elongated than most transfers. I understand that many people will have questions about the process. In order to respect Christian’s medical confidentiality, we won’t be going into any details. Brentford fans can rest assured that we have undertaken significant due diligence to ensure that Christian is in the best possible shape to return to competitive football. Now Christian has made the decision to sign for Brentford, all parties want to focus fully on football.

 “We are sure that Christian will make a big impact at Brentford and on the Premier League between now and the end of the season.”

Christian has been training with young players at AFC Ajax, in Amsterdam, as he builds his fitness. The move was completed with the midfield player still in The Netherlands. 

Christian has recently received his COVID-19 vaccination and, in order to comply with rules regarding entry to the UK, he will travel to West London in the coming days and will not train with Brentford this week.
Christian’s first professional football came at Ajax, where he spent five years – winning three league titles, a Dutch Cup and a Dutch Super Cup – before moving to Tottenham. T

he Danish international played 226 Premier League games for Spurs, making 305 appearances in total, including one in a UEFA Champions League Final, in six-and-a-half years in North London. The five-time Danish Footballer of the Year had 18 months with Inter but left the current Italian champions in December.