When he arrived in July, it wasn’t initially clear just how big a role Christan Eriksen would play at Manchester United. He spent the latter half of last season on loan at Brentford and was crucial to the Bees' success, returning one Premier League goal, four assists and a host of standout displays.
Brentford wanted to tie him down on a new long-term deal in the summer, however, his head was quickly turned when United declared their interest. For many, that interest from the Red Devils came as a surprise.
Eriksen had of course worked with Ten Hag previously, training with his Ajax side as part of his return to football following his cardiac arrest while playing for Denmark last year.
And after losing creative profiles like Paul Pogba, Juan Mata and Jesse Lingard in the summer, many assumed Eriksen was being brought into the club as a cheap way to add more creativity to the side.
However, it’s been in a deeper role that Ten Hag’s utilised him for much of this season so far. He’s impressed while doing so, scooping United’s Player of the Month for September and even drawing comparisons with club greats like Paul Scholes and Michael Carrick.
Even late last week, France manager Didier Deschamps talked of his “surprise” at just how good the 30-year-old has been. Speaking ahead of France’s clash with Denmark, he said: “There is an attacking player who even surprised me, and not just because of what had happened that could have been dramatic for him, and obviously it’s Christian Eriksen.
“But the ability that he shows with his club in the position he plays, because he has always been someone who has a remarkable technical ability. But to play so frequently for his club in the midfield, to see the volume of games he plays, this ability even to recover is impressive.”
“And he has always had the ability to score goals, to make other players score – he has always had that.”
Eriksen’s creative numbers were among the best in the Premier League last season. Beyond the goals and assists, in terms of Expected Assists (xA) per 90, according to Wyscout there were only three players - Kevin De Bruyne, Kostas Tsimikas and Trent Alexander-Arnold - who averaged higher (0.28) than the 30-year-old. For comparison, Bruno Fernandes ranked 18th in this department.
That average has noticeably fallen so far this season to just 0.08 per 90, obviously as a consequence of playing in a deeper position, yet the value he’s bringing to United within the heart of their midfield currently trumps what he could offer in the final third.
As per FBref, no United player has completed more successful Premier League passes for the team (239) so far, nor has any player received more successful passes than the Dane (264) too. Both statistics capture just how integral he’s been in orchestrating United’s improved possession play under Ten Hag so far this season.
