Leeds United look set to lose Kalvin Phillips to Manchester City this summer after The Athletic reported that a fee has been agreed between the two clubs.
Luckily for Leeds, Phil Hay has reported that the Whites will be in the market for a replacement, and interestingly, in recent days Leeds have been linked with Christian Eriksen.
We know what you’re thinking, Eriksen is absolutely nothing like Kalvin Phillips. After all, one is a destroying number six, while Eriksen is your prototype creative number 10.
However, during his time at Inter Milan, Eriksen showed that he could flourish in a deeper role in a 3-5-2, and interestingly, his performances in that position drew comparisons to Andrea Pirlo.
“Eriksen is the complete midfielder, as he can play both wide and in a deeper role. I see him very similar to Pirlo, so he could also play in front of the defence. He can see the passing lines, can shoot from distance too,” Carlo Ancelotti said about the midfielder.
Ancelotti isn’t the only onlooker who has compared Eriksen to Pirlo in the past. Antonio Cassano was also quick to point out the similarities between the pair.
“We are talking about a real champion. He just needed confidence, it’s not like he needed to be taught things. Conte has changed his mind about him, I now hope that he will leave Eriksen (to play) and give him the confidence,” former Roma, Real Madrid and Italy ace Cassano said.
“The situation reminds me of Pirlo at Juventus. At first, he was not part of Conte’s plans but, under pressure from the board, he gave him another chance. Conte invented the 3-5-2 system and won everything there was to be won.”
The Pirlo comparison is particularly interesting due to the fact that Phillips has long been known as ‘The Yorkshire Pirlo’ at Leeds United, and while Eriksen isn’t a carbon copy of Phillips by any stretch of the imagination, there’s reason to believe that he could act as his replacement at Leeds.
Indeed, while Eriksen lacks the physicality of Phillips, that side of the game could be covered by Marc Roca, who has reportedly been bulking up over the past two years.
Eriksen could certainly take up the quarterback role at Leeds, he’s one of the best long passers in the game, and while he’s more attack-minded than Phillips, he has the tactical nous to adapt to any position.
If Jesse Marsch is to play his patented 4-2-2-2 next season, Roca and Eriksen could be a great partnership, combining finesse and physicality in the middle of the park.
Leeds may be set to lose the Yorkshire Pirlo, but they could pick up the Danish version on a free at the end of the month.
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