Reported Tottenham Hotspur target Mikkel Damsgaard admitted that he has modelled his game on former Spurs hero and Denmark teammate Christian Eriksen, while speaking to Tuttomercatoweb.
For the Sampdoria starlet, we can only imagine the pressure he was feeling.
As Eriksen watched on from his bed in a Copenhagen hospital, the most daunting of tasks fell to a baby-faced 20-year-old with just three international caps under his belt.
The mission, should you choose to accept it: Fill the gaping void created by the tear-jerking absence of one of Denmark’s favourite sons.
But to say Damsgaard has stepped up to the mark would be an understatement.
It was his 25-yard wondergoal against Russia last week that set Kasper Hjulmand’s turbo-charged side on their way to the round-of-16; a moment of rabbit-out-the-hat magic which made Eriksen and the whole of the nation proud.
“Did you see that Damsgaard goal? I’ll tell you his fair price, today at least 30 million,” exclaimed his Sampdoria owner Massimo Ferrero. “But if he scores again he will reach 40 million… ”
Have Tottenham already been priced out of a move for a man who is now being linked with the likes of Barcelona too?
Maybe so. But should the opportunity arrive, Damsgaard would surely be tempted by the opportunity to follow in his icon’s footsteps.
Will Tottenham win the race for Denmark hero Mikkel Damsgaard?
“I can say that I was inspired by him (Eriksen). He is one of the players I studied the most, I really admired him a lot,” said Damsgaard; a revelation in Serie A since his move from Nordsjaelland in early-2020.
“Since then, I have always played as number 10.”
Damsgaard has also been linked with the likes of Leeds United, Southampton and Crystal Palace.
Leicester City have shown an interest, too, in a player described as a ‘child prodigy’ by Claudio Ranieri and labelled ‘phenomenal’ by Kasper Schmeichel.
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