Antonio Conte admitted he is ‘more comfortable’ relying on Christian Eriksen now, but what has changed between the coach and the former Tottenham star?
Eriksen joined Inter in a €24m deal in the January of 2020.
He scored four goals and registered three assists in his first 26 appearances with the club in the 2019-20 campaign and has 19 games in all competitions in 2020-21, although he’s only played 760 minutes so far.
Antonio Conte admitted he is ‘more comfortable’ relying on Christian Eriksen now, but what has changed between the coach and the former Tottenham star?
Eriksen joined Inter in a €24m deal in the January of 2020.
He scored four goals and registered three assists in his first 26 appearances with the club in the 2019-20 campaign and has 19 games in all competitions in 2020-21, although he’s only played 760 minutes so far.
The former Tottenham star was linked with leaving the Meazza in January due to lack of playing time, but Antonio Conte has recently changed his position on the pitch using him as a classic centre midfielder.
The Dane scored a free-kick winner in a Coppa Italia Derby clash this past January and played the last two games along with Marcelo Brozovic and Nicolò Barella to replace the injured Arturo Vidal.
“Eriksen has incredible qualities. I think he’s perfect to play along with Brozovic,”claimed Inter legend Marco Materazzi.
“Christian Eriksen is starting to understand what we want from him and I think the fact he played last week and tonight shows he’s really growing. This is the path, everyone needs to feel they are protagonists and we can count on everybody,” Conte explained after Inter’s 3-1 win over Lazio on Sunday.
“I think Christian had a few problems settling in, understanding Italian football, which is very difficult and tactical compared to the Premier League. There is also a far greater intensity now than in previous years here,” continued the coach.
“He has started to get into these situations, we tried in every way to settle him in, even changing tactical system. I think now he has made a step towards us, is starting to understand Italian, which is an important development too. He is understanding what we need.
“Eriksen was very focused when defending as well as attacking. He has a different grip and power to his leg now after the fitness work.
“He’s an extra option for us and I am more comfortable relying on him now.”
The question is: will he remain among the starters once Vidal returns to action? Time will tell.