The former Spurs star is taking time to settle in Italy and some believe he may not suit his new club
Paolo Di Canio has claimed Christian Eriksen “will become a problem” for Inter manager Antonio Conte.
Eriksen only joined the Serie A side in January from Premier League side Tottenham but has struggled to make his mark as Inter lose ground in the title race.
Across his first eight appearances for Inter, the Denmark international has started just three times, scoring once and adding one assist, with both contributions coming in the Europa League last month.
After playing the final half hour in the club’s 2-0 loss to Juventus on Sunday, Di Canio picked out Eriksen as an issue Conte has to sort out sooner or later.
“Eriksen will become a problem for Conte,” Di Canio told Sky Sports Italia. “He is not like Diego Costa, with whom you can fight if you don’t let him play.
“He is a guy like Hazard: he is silent, you don’t see him much, he never complains, but it is difficult to have a direct and frank confrontation.
“With Eriksen at Tottenham he had the chance to lose dangerous balls because there were those who ran for him, at Inter they can’t afford that. He doesn’t jump the opponent in one-on-one fights, he doesn’t have speed in his legs.”
While Di Canio questioned Eriksen’s suitability for a side like Inter, decorated manager Fabio Capello believes he can succeed if deployed the right way by Conte.
“Italian football is not very fast but Eriksen has never been very fast in his career,” Capello said.
“I think he can do well as a director, like Andrea Pirlo at Juventus and not as a winger. He does not have the speed to be a box-to-box player.
“I think he can be a player like Brozovic and not a player like Vidal. He is not a man who does a lot dribbling.”
After Eriksen scored his first goal for Inter last month against Ludogorets, Conte suggested his new signing was still some way from his best form.
“I’m happy for him, the goal always gives confidence,” Conte told Sky Sport Italia.
“Christian just needs to work to find the right physical condition, to find the brilliance of his best moments at Tottenham.
“He can do even more than what he showed us today, but we are very happy because we know what he can give us.”
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