Tottenham’s Christian Eriksen is ‘repeatedly’ being linked by ‘many media’ with a move to Barcelona, report BT on Monday.
Now let us stop things right there.
Despite the almost obsessive attempts of the Danish media, mainly newspaper BT, to make Eriksen to Barcelona into a big story, they’ve largely failed.
Last week BT pushed it more than once, making a huge deal out of seemingly very little and once again trying to launch Eriksen to Barcelona.
Not one Catalan newspaper picked it up.
That in itself is odd, Barcelona’s local newspapers will usually jump on any little story, but despite the best efforts of BT they ignored the latest Eriksen efforts.
Undeterred, BT have another big article on Monday. And this time it’s explosive.
The newspaper has spoken to Michael Laudrup’s agent Bayram Tutumlu (who it is certainly worth Googling) and he’s, unsurprisingly, got huge-big-massive claims.
This is what Tutumlu is quoted as saying about the Tottenham star: “I was invited to see Christian Eriksen in London in September, even though he was having a renovation of the house, and here he asked me what to do to get to a bigger club.
“I told him that a bigger club wants him. When I visited Barcelona with my associate Evren Sahin and Brøndby’s owner Jan Bech Andersen, Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu said that Christian Eriksen became the next big player from Denmark after Michael Laudrup. So I told Eriksen that Barcelona wants him.
“I also told Christian Eriksen that Barcelona is looking at more things when buying a player, not just his football qualities. And it ended with the fact that they bought Coutinho instead. This is because alone, his agent (Martin Schoots) has destroyed it for him. But I’m still talking with Christian Eriksen, and I’ve told him that if he wants a bigger club, it’s not going to happen through that agent. I do not want to mention his agent’s name because it hurts me as much as he has ruined Christian Eriksen.”
Again, it’s worth doing that Googling.
That wasn’t enough, and Tutumlu continued talking about the Tottenham player: “Fortunately for Christian Eriksen, his father is a good guy who does not interfere in his career, such as Kasper Dolberg’s father does. Everything was ready for Kasper Dolberg to switch to a big Spanish club, but his father destroyed it. His father hurt him a lot. But I have warned Christian Eriksen to not make the same mistake as Daniel Agger.
“There were people around Daniel Agger who destroyed his move to Barcelona. Michael Laudrup had otherwise told Barcelona that Daniel Agger would fit the club well, but Daniel Agger’s father and, in particular, agent Per Steffensen destroyed it all. And when a club like Barcelona closes a door, it does not open again.”
Then when asked exactly what Eriksen’s agent has done wrong, Tutumlu said: “I do not want to comment. Christian Eriksen must do that.”
He then added: “Now it may be that Christian Eriksen has ruined his chance to come to Barcelona because of his agent. But I hope for him that he does not make mistakes. Christian Eriksen knows what to do now. Let me clarify. It was not Christian Eriksen who failed, so Barcelona bought Coutinho instead of him.
“It was his surroundings. A good agent must be in touch with the big clubs. I do, even though I do not operate anymore. So does my son. Just ask Jan Bech Andersen. In three days I had a meeting with him and Bartomeu. I just have to take my phone, so I’m in contact with the biggest clubs. And Christian Eriksen knows who has failed. And again – it’s not his father. Even though I do not know his father, he seems like a good person.”
Tutumlu was asked if the door for a Barcelona transfer is now closed for Eriksen: “No, no club will close the door of a player like Christian Eriksen. Your rivals will also have him.”
So what about a Real Madrid move for the Tottenham player?: “Yes, I have good contacts too. But he has to reconstruct his surroundings. It may be that the football world is huge for you, but it’s just a handful for me. I can find him a good club, as I have done with Michael Laudrup. I have also met with Tottenham’s chairman Daniel Levy a month ago, so I know what it takes for Christian Eriksen to move on.”
And that “I can find him a good club” seems to be the crux of things here. Tutumlu is clearly trying to edge Schoots aside as Eriksen’s agent, and then build a transfer from Tottenham.
BT, wanting anything which will quench their Eriksen-to-Barcelona thirst, have lapped up comments they would likely have otherwise been openly dubious about.
The article is already receiving criticism in Denmark but should do the trick of getting Eriksen to Barcelona into a Catalan newspaper.
