Hakan Calhanoglu was officially announced as a new Inter Milan player on Tuesday (22/6/2021). The Turkish midfielder was recruited for free after his contract ended with AC Milan.
Calhanoglu is tied to the Nerazzurri for the next three years or until June 2024. The news of the 27-year-old’s departure from AC Milan has been sticking out over the past season. This is inseparable from Calhanoglu’s previous work ties that were about to expire and he never signed a new contract.
Calhanoglu’s move to Inter itself is understandable considering the Nerazzurri have the potential to lose Christian Eriksen. Eriksen had a cardiac arrest while defending the Danish national team against Finalandia in Group B Euro 2020, last Saturday (12/6/2021).
Calhanoglu’s presence can be an interesting and commensurate option to be Eriksen’s successor if the worst case scenario should happen. A number of experts say Eriksen has the potential to be unable to continue his career as a footballer due to heart problems. Here are three reasons Hakan Calhanoglu could be Eriksen’s replacement at Inter Milan.
More Experience in Italy
Speaking of experience, Calhanoglu is a player who is more experienced than Eriksen in Italy. Eriksen only joined Inter in January 2020, while Calhanoglu has tasted Serie A starting from defending AC in mid 2017-2021. Four seasons defending AC Milan, Calhanoglu has appeared 172 times with a contribution of 32 goals and 48 assists in all competitions.
Unfortunately, he has not been able to bring AC Milan to success because the Rossoneri camp is “slow” in developing the team. Regardless, his experience and personal record has proven that Calhanoglu is a quality midfielder and could be an attractive option for Inter.
A Playmaker like Eriksen
Yes, Calhanoglu and Eriksen are players who have a role as playmakers in the team they are defending. This role has been attached to Calhanoglu when he started his career with Karlsruher SC (German Second Division, 2011).
Meanwhile, Eriksen began to hone his role as a playmaker when strengthening Ajax Amsterdam in 2009. The two players also have other similarities because they can play in any position in midfield.
Free Kick Specialist
Hakan Calhanoglu is also synonymous with Christian Eriksen with a free kick specialist. Based on transfermarkt records, 16 of the 109 goals that Eriksen scored were born from direct free kicks. On the other hand, Calhanoglu is even better with 25 free kicks from the 88 balls he has scored in his career so far.
