‘Wouldn’t surprise me...’: BT pundit says 'amazing' Paratici target may be open to joining Spurs

Former Scotland manager Alex McLeish has claimed that he would not be surprised to see Christian Eriksen return to Tottenham Hotspur, despite interest from Newcastle United.

Having been released by Inter due to not being allowed to play in Italy with a cardioverter-defibrillator implant device, the former Spurs man was snapped up by Brentford on a short-term contract which is set to expire at the end of the season.

Consequently, rumours have emerged linking Eriksen with a whole host of Premier League clubs. This includes the Lilywhites, following Football Insider’s report which revealed that Tottenham are keeping tabs on the Denmark international.

The Northern Echo have claimed that Newcastle have a strong interest in the signing Eriksen, and are also hopeful of striking up a deal with the Brentford midfielder.

McLeish, who can be heard on BT Sport nowadays, has admitted that he would not be surprised to see Eriksen lining up in a white shirt next season due to his ‘love’ of the club.

Speaking with Football Insider, he claimed: “Spurs did lose their rhythm a little bit losing someone like Eriksen. He was a key individual in those years where they came very, very close.

“He’ll be a free agent so it wouldn’t surprise me if he went back to Spurs with his love for the club.

“Newcastle are ambitious as well. They’ve had a couple of great results since Eddie Howe brought in a couple of great players in.

“Also, he seems a very honourable guy. If he stayed at Brentford it would be an incredible gesture.”

Tottenham boss Antonio Conte heaped praise on Eriksen after his Spurs side were held to a 0-0 draw against Brentford at the weekend. He claimed that “it’s amazing” to see the midfielder performing at the level that he is after