‘I am almost certain’: Former player confident that experienced United man ‘will leave’ this summer

Former Danish international Brian Laudrup strongly believes that Christian Eriksen will cut ties with Manchester United this summer.

The midfielder was one of Erik ten Hag’s first-ever signings as United boss, joining the club as a free agent from Brentford ahead of the 2022/2023 campaign.

He went on to make 44 appearances in all competitions across the term, 37 of which were starts as he formed one-half of a solid partnership with Casemiro in the middle of the park. 

Eriksen, unfortunately, sustained a nasty ankle injury during an FA Cup clash with Reading last January and went on to miss 16 matches, including the Carabao Cup final win over Newcastle United at Wembley. 

Following the acquisition of Mason Mount, Kobbie Mainoo’s scintillating emergence to the first team and Scott McTominay’s off-the-bench heroics, Eriksen has found game time incredibly hard to come by this campaign. A knee complaint did rule him out for a brief spell but when he has been fit, he has started just 11 times and made a further nine cameos as a substitute.

Laudrup on likely United departures

Because of this, Laudrup has explained that his compatriot will likely be adamant about exiting Old Trafford at the end of 2023/2024. He told ViaPlay: “There are also some very, very large names.

“After all, we are talking Christian Eriksen, and we are talking Casemiro, Varane, [Harry] Maguire and so on. Christian Eriksen will not get any playing time. Casemiro is also starting to become an older player. So I believe that, somehow, you have to go out and replace these players, so that you can try to create a new modern team.

When quizzed on whether he believes Eriksen is ‘good enough’ to play for the 20-time champions, he added: “No he’s not. A clear example now is that he doesn’t get very much playing time.

“The vicious circle here is that when he is allowed to play, he is not up to speed at all. And it is difficult when you are 32 years old. Therefore, I am almost certain that he will leave Manchester United after this season.”