Tottenham’s Christian Eriksen has taken the rare step of speaking out publicly about his national football federation and what he believes are its failings.
Denmark have been disappointing their supporters for some time now, and despite having a very promising young generation, the country still seem to stumble from football disappointment to football disappointment, with some hope cruelly thrown in every now and again.
Eriksen has a leading role so the Tottenham player carries a lot of pressure and clearly believes he’s had to speak out.
Used to an ultra-professional approach under Maurico Pochettino at Tottenham, Eriksen can’t understand why and how the Danes are getting even the most basic requirements wrong.
Speaking to Ekstra Bladet, Eriksen explained: “The diet is something that simply must be mastered. But we have, both in Denmark and abroad, seen examples where it was not good enough. We just need a different type of diet, as an elite athlete, than is typically served buffet-style at a hotel.”
It’s not just the food which is an issue, Eriksen believes Denmark have slipped behind in their treatment of players. As caring for the health and fitness of footballers has improved greatly over the past decade, the Tottenham player thinks his country have been left behind, and aren’t taking the situation seriously enough.
“The treatment of the players in the health sector is a little old school. Football has evolved… There is a need for individual treatment of the players.”
Eriksen doesn’t stand alone in his view and several teammates, including Simon Kjaer, have hired in their own treatment whilst way on international duty.
As a Tottenham player the difference between club and country is something noticeable for Eriksen: “In general, I miss a more professional approach to things when we are together in the national team camp.”
Simon Kjær and William Kvist are among those backing Eriksen, and the senior players believe the decision makers at the DBU aren’t treating the situation seriously enough.
With these kind of comments, footballers usually risk public opinion going the opposite way to which they had hoped for, but it’s looking safe for Eriksen so far. In a poll Ekstra Bladet have been running, over 66% believe it’s an embarrassing situation for the DBU, 26% believe it’s an embarrassment for both the players and the DBU, and 7% think it’s the players who come of it looking worst.
Maybe Tottenham and Mauricio Pochettino should prepare for a visit of the DBU, so Eriksen can show his country’s football chiefs exactly how things should be done.
