TeamViewer Trending: The Magic Christian

Named in the starting XI alongside 19-year-old Kobbie Mainoo, Christian faced the tough prospect of grappling with Villa’s physically and technically imposing midfield trio of Ross Barkley, Youri Tielemans and Morgan Rogers.

But any fears proved unfounded, as the 32-year-old – like his elder defensive colleague, Jonny Evans – used his intelligence and expertise to steer the Reds to a respectable, hard-fought away point.

It continued a fine start to the season for Eriksen, who has scored three times and started six of United’s games so far in 2024/25. It’s fair to say the first team have been navigating choppy waters during the early weeks of the new season, so it’s little surprise that Eriksen’s experience and calmness have come to the fore.

Villa was just the latest showing, but by no means the most spectacular. 

Stand-out moment

The Stretford End. A Tuesday night in early September, and United are enjoying the most profitable goalscoring outing of the season so far – a multi-goal barrelling of Barnsley.

Eriksen has already teed up Alejandro Garnacho with a crisp assist early in the second half. But in the final stages of the game, the midfielder really came to the fore, poaching two effortless goals inside four minutes – the latter of which was dispatched with all the delicious ease of a Roger Federer forehand.

The following game, Christian backed it up with a booming drive against FC Twente, as if to emphasise his return to top form.

The goals are the icing, the gloss, the moments that earn you the front and back-page headlines. But of course, Christian’s game is largely about the quiet, incremental influence he has on opponents and those around him, and that’s where he has really excelled in the early weeks of this season: by offering United’s midfield – particularly the young (Mainoo) and the new (Ugarte) – some gentle, reassuring authority and wisdom.

His international performances have been equally encouraging too: on Tuesday evening, he scored and assisted in Denmark’s 2-2 draw with Switzerland. All the evidence, then, suggests that the Danish hero is approaching the levels of form he delivered in his first season at Manchester United, when he made 44 appearances despite missing over two months of the season due to a horror tackle from then Reading striker Andy Carroll.

Performance insight

Eriksen’s displays have impressed plenty of United fans so far this season; some of whom might have wondered how much the 32-year-old would play this year, given the emergence of Mainoo and the purchase of Ugarte. Christian appeared in only 22 of United’s 38 league games last year. But his start to 2024/25 has changed those expectations, with Eriksen reminding all of his enduring talent.

Among his more public admirers was Michael Dawson, a former team-mate during Christian’s Tottenham Hotspur days. Commenting on Sky Sports after the Barnsley game, Dawson unfurled a glowing tribute to his one-time colleague.

“I’ve played with Christian Eriksen and the ability that this player has, and the quality… he’s such an intelligent player,” said the ex-defender. “He’s not somebody who is going to be flying in, but his ball-striking, his delivery, his passing… everything is crisp, everything is done with pure quality.

“We’ve seen Christian Eriksen in the number 10 position. He is unbelievable, he’s a gifted player – I’ve seen it with my own eyes on many occasions. He can see a pass, he brings calmness, he keeps the ball when you need to slow the game down, and then he can speed it up. He’s just a really, really intelligent footballer.”

Christian said

Throughout the calendar year of 2024, there has been media speculation that Eriksen might seek a move away from the club, but the Dane spoke enthusiastically about continuing his stay following the Barnsley result.

“I feel very good being at United,” he told the press. “There’s one year left [on my contract] so my focus is going to be on this year, going full out, and see what happens afterwards.

“I’m a guy who likes being in a place where my family is settled and at the same time being in a place where I can benefit and play. That’s always going to be my aim.”

The boss said

Explaining Eriksen’s selection for our 3-0 away win at Southampton in September – Christian’s first competitive start of 2024/25 – Erik ten Hag said: [He played] because he earned it. He has had a very good pre-season and some very good performances in training, so now he has earned a start.”

Earlier in Eriksen’s United career, Ten Hag expanded on the unique qualities that the Dane offers the squad. “Every player has their own characteristics and identity, so another player will always fill it in in a different way,” said Erik. “It's quite clear that Christian Eriksen, for our squad, brings top quality and he has some specifics that are hard to replace. For instance, his impact in the final third.”

We’re seeing that impact regularly so far this season, in Eriksen’s classically understated way. The goals have brought more attention, but it’s within the subtle nuances of the game – tempo, control, decision-making chief among them – that we really see the best of this humble, elegant midfielder.

Did you know?

Christian is on track to become just the third Dane in United history to reach 100 appearances. At the time of writing, he has played 80 times for the Reds, a tally which puts him behind only goalkeeping great Peter Schmeichel and popular winger Jesper Olsen.

1.Peter Schmeichel – 398
2. Jesper Olsen – 176
3. Christian Eriksen – 80
4. Rasmus Hojlund – 48
5. John Sivebaek – 34
6. Anders Lindegaard – 29
7. Mads Timm – 1