Man Utd star blasted in 'scandalous' claim after receiving international call-up

Manchester United star Christian Eriksen has been blasted after his involvement in the latest Denmark squad. Eriksen has not featured regularly for the Red Devils this season, making just 16 league appearances, starting only eight and none of the last seven league fixtures.

Despite his lack of involvement at club level, Eriksen has been called up by Denmark for their upcoming friendlies with Switzerland the the Faroe Islands, which will be key preparation fixtures ahead of this summer's Euro 2024. Eriksen's involvement in the squad, as well as the call-ups of Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and Mikkel Damsgaard, who are in similar situations at their respective clubs, have infuriated former Real Madrid and Denmark star Thomas Gravesen.

"The Christian Eriksen we all know, he's no longer there," Gravesen told Tipsbladet. "Christian Eriksen doesn't play football anymore. Christian Eriksen sits on the bench and watches football. Christian Eriksen, as we know him, he's gone. We must not regress to the idea that it's only based on merits that he gets selected. Christian Eriksen should not only be selected based on his merits.

"You simply have to respect the people who work tirelessly day in and day out, playing football and succeeding on the field. That is something you must respect. You have to respect the work that goes on in the Superliga.

“But they're not playing! My point is that when Pierre-Emile Højbjerg played at full throttle, he was the best player we had in midfield. When Thomas Delaney played in Dortmund at full throttle, he was the best player. When Damsgaard flourished at Sampdoria, he was the best. When they play, there's no doubt the big leagues abroad are the best. But now a handful of players are returning without confidence. Kasper Hjulmand selects players who don't come home with a bag of energy.

“My point is, you have to select some players who have the groove and who have success and confidence. Yes, Christian Eriksen has shown at his top level that he's better than Nicolai Vallys. But Nicolai Vallys hasn't had the chance to showcase himself among players of a higher calibre. Give him the chance when he's in the gear he's in. All things considered, Vallys is in 100 times better form than Christian Eriksen."

Speaking about the importance of the upcoming fixtures, Gravesen added: "The idea is that we should be able to use these games to integrate players. His constant preaching about how we need relationships, and we need to do this and that - he even selected 26 men! He also has a Kasper Dolberg with him, who has started a bit but who is not at all justified to be in the national team squad. And neither is Christian Eriksen.

“You simply can't take a player who hasn't played in two and a half months. He got 38 minutes against Fulham, where we also lost that match, when he came in. He shouldn't be played into form on the Danish national team. The Danish national team is not a buddy club. It's about winning, and that's been a problem for Kasper Hjulmand since Qatar.

“Kasper Hjulmand has absolutely no weight! This was a golden opportunity for Kasper Hjulmand to test some of the budding players and some of the bubbling talents we have. And then they just choose to take the old guard with them. Two completely irrelevant matches. Totally scandalous. It's horrible, what's going on. I doubt whether Kasper Hjulmand is the right man to take Denmark through the European Championship.”

Continuing his attack on Denmark boss Hjulmand, Gravesen continued: “It's completely scandalous that he hasn't selected Nicolai Vallys. It's a scandal of dimensions that we have a national coach who sees so little towards Denmark when there's a player running around with those qualities. When you look at the way he's playing football right now. And then they choose to select a player who has been on the bench at Manchester United, Christian Eriksen, just to maintain relationships.”