Antonio Conte admits he is ‘really surprised’ by Christian Eriksen’s blistering form for Brentford

Antonio Conte says he would love to re-sign Christian Eriksen, with the Spurs boss claiming the midfielder might be even better now than before his cardiac arrest.

Conte coached Eriksen at Inter Milan before his harrowing collapse during Euro 2020.

Spurs passed up a previous opportunity to bring back the midfielder, who spent seven years in north London, allowing Brentford to sign him in January.

Ahead of the two sides’ meeting on Saturday, Eriksen has won all five games he has started for the Bees.

‘For sure, to work again with Christian is a fantastic opportunity because I enjoyed the time we spent together in Inter Milan,’ Conte told Sky Sports.

‘When he understood what I wanted from him, he played and we won together the league in Italy. When you have this type of player – a great player, a good man – I think every manager, every coach likes to work with them.’

Conte was also asked if Eriksen’s form had changed the situation around a possible return to Spurs.

Tottenham boss Antonio Conte (right) is looking forward to renewing acquaintances with Christian Eriksen (left) at the weekend

‘I repeat, in January no one knew the situation about Christian – that he could play. For sure we have to be happy and I’m the first person to be happy to see him again on the pitch and to play this type of football,’ he said.

‘Usually when these type of situations happen, the people’s first question is: will he come back in the same way before it happened? This, he’s showing that maybe he’s doing better.’ 

Conte added: ‘Christian played here for many years, and for sure the fans appreciated him a lot. And now the most important thing is that he continues to play… but on Saturday I hope he plays not so well! But only Saturday. But to continue this way and to show he’s Christian Eriksen.’

Eriksen will return feature against Tottenham for the first time since his departure in 2020