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Ajax’s Christian Eriksen: I had trials at Chelsea but why go somewhere you might not play
The Danish midfielder has revealed that he chose to join the Eredivisie club due to their tradition of handing opportunities to young players
Feb 16, 2012 7:19:00 AM
By Oliver Platt
Getty Images
Ajax midfielder Christian Eriksen does not regret his decision to join the Eredivisie club as a teenager, despite spending time on trial with Chelsea.
The Danish playmaker, who will feature for Ajax against Manchester United in the Europa League on Thursday, opted to move to the Netherlands instead of one of Europe's biggest clubs, believing that first team opportunities would be more readily available.
"I always thought it would be better to go to Holland first, especially because of the position I play and the football I wanted to play," Eriksen told the Daily Mail.
"Ajax have a tradition of good football and play 4-3-3, which suits me. They also spend lots of money on youth players with the aim of putting them in the first team.
"Top sides in England have to get into the Champions League every year so they are not going to buy a 17-year-old and put him straight in the first team.
"They buy players who can play now. You might not get a game until you are 21. So why should you go there?"
Eriksen got a taste of English football during Jose Mourinho's time in charge of the Blues while still playing for Danish club Odense.
"I went to Chelsea twice when I was 14 and 15," he said. "I was at Danish club Odense at the time and came across with a friend to Cobham."
Last year, Eriksen showed Chelsea what they might have missed when he starred in Denmark's narrow 2-1 defeat to England at Wembley.
"I liked playing against England because you had a 4-4-2 and there was space for me to go into between the defense and midfield," Eriksen continued.
"It was a big game for us, special. Maybe for England it wasn't. I had fun and decided to keep my own shirt as a memory of playing well rather than swapping."
Eriksen did admit, however, that he retained ambitions of joining one of Europe's elite clubs in search of Champions League success.
"You can learn so much from training with the top guys," Eriksen conceded. "You don't learn from playing against them.
"When it's time to leave Ajax, I'll try to go to a bigger team who do well in the Champions League every year and win trophies. But I'd make sure it was somewhere where I wouldn't just sit on the bench. Right now, my mind is only focused on Ajax."
At the forefront of his focus will be the two-legged tie against Manchester United, with Eriksen excited by the opportunity to impress against the English champions.
"When we were sitting watching the draw, we thought, 'Oh no, that's the team we wanted to avoid'," Eriksen admitted. "But now we're excited."
The Danish playmaker, who will feature for Ajax against Manchester United in the Europa League on Thursday, opted to move to the Netherlands instead of one of Europe's biggest clubs, believing that first team opportunities would be more readily available.
"I always thought it would be better to go to Holland first, especially because of the position I play and the football I wanted to play," Eriksen told the Daily Mail.
"Ajax have a tradition of good football and play 4-3-3, which suits me. They also spend lots of money on youth players with the aim of putting them in the first team.
"Top sides in England have to get into the Champions League every year so they are not going to buy a 17-year-old and put him straight in the first team.
"They buy players who can play now. You might not get a game until you are 21. So why should you go there?"
Eriksen got a taste of English football during Jose Mourinho's time in charge of the Blues while still playing for Danish club Odense.
"I went to Chelsea twice when I was 14 and 15," he said. "I was at Danish club Odense at the time and came across with a friend to Cobham."
Last year, Eriksen showed Chelsea what they might have missed when he starred in Denmark's narrow 2-1 defeat to England at Wembley.
"I liked playing against England because you had a 4-4-2 and there was space for me to go into between the defense and midfield," Eriksen continued.
"It was a big game for us, special. Maybe for England it wasn't. I had fun and decided to keep my own shirt as a memory of playing well rather than swapping."
Eriksen did admit, however, that he retained ambitions of joining one of Europe's elite clubs in search of Champions League success.
"You can learn so much from training with the top guys," Eriksen conceded. "You don't learn from playing against them.
"When it's time to leave Ajax, I'll try to go to a bigger team who do well in the Champions League every year and win trophies. But I'd make sure it was somewhere where I wouldn't just sit on the bench. Right now, my mind is only focused on Ajax."
At the forefront of his focus will be the two-legged tie against Manchester United, with Eriksen excited by the opportunity to impress against the English champions.
"When we were sitting watching the draw, we thought, 'Oh no, that's the team we wanted to avoid'," Eriksen admitted. "But now we're excited."
'I always thought it would be better to go to Holland first, especially because of the position I play and the football I wanted to play,' says Eriksen, who looks so skinny it is hard to believe he is a footballer.
'Ajax have a tradition of good football and play 4-3-3, which suits me. They also spend lots of money on youth players with the aim of putting them in the first team.
'Top sides in England have to get into the Champions League every year so they are not going to buy a 17-year-old and put him straight in the first team. They buy players who can play now. You might not get a game until you are 21. So why should you go there?'
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