Spurs’ Christian Eriksen: I'm not ready to be compared to Arsenal’s Mesut Ozil

Christian Eriksen

Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Christian Eriksen has rejected comparisons between himself and Arsenal’s Mesut Ozil, while insisting that he is not yet deserving of such praise.

The 22-year-old Danish international arrived at White Hart Lane last summer following an £11.5 million move from Ajax and initially failed to find his feet in England’s top tier.

However, while many of Spurs’ recent signings have been tipped for an exit due to their poor form, Eriksen experienced a dramatic turnaround during the second half of the campaign and finished the season as the club’s second top goal scorer in the Premier League with a total of seven.

Meanwhile, the opposite could be said of Ozil, who after having been signed by Arsenal for £42m began his debut season in England in blistering form before experiencing a lack of confidence and string of injuries.

But the German international, who is set to star for Joachim Low’s World Cup side in Brazil, has carved out a reputation as one of the world’s best play makers over a number of years and Eriksen believes the comparison is currently unjustified even if there are currently question marks over Ozil.

“Özil is a very good player and I still have a little way to go with what he has achieved in Germany and Madrid.

“He also needs to get used to a good league. But again, he helped to win something they have not done in many years,” he told reporters.

Given how highly rated Eriksen was rated during his spell in the Eredivisie with Ajax, he has already started to repay his price tag in the white half of north London, which, considering his vast potential and ability, seems to be an excellent deal given it is a quarter of the fee their city rivals paid for Ozil.

Christian Eriksen produced eight assists during the 2013/14 Premier League season compared to Mesut Ozil’s total of nine.