Eriksen Targets Manchester City's Bench

When Ajax revealed Liverpool were tracking 21-year-old midfielder Christian Eriksen, many assumed the flashy playmaker was near the top of Brendan Rodgers' list of targets entering his second summer in charge at Liverpool Football Club.

Soon after, the player revealed his club had slapped a steep €20M price tag on him, largely cooling any speculation Liverpool was a realistic destination. Now, with the player further revealing that his preferred target is Manchester City, it should all but end talk of him moving to Anfield.

"I'd like to play for a club like Manchester City or PSG," Eriksen told Algemeen Dagblad. "For me it is important that I have a good feeling at the club. I should be able to play football and then I could develop [so that] I will be a better football player."

With Ajax seeking €20M for a largely unproven talent entering the final year of his contract, one who has made it clear he won't be signing an extension, there's a good chance that in the end PSG and City will be the only sides willing to gamble such a large fee.

For the player, though, one has to wonder at anyone who would target a club like Manchester City not because they're positioned to win trophies or because they can pay the most but out of a belief that playing time and continued development won't be that hard to come by.

There's faith in one's abilities and there's foolish overconfidence, and a promising but unfinished prospect like Eriksen seeking to join Manchester City's swollen ranks of pricey talent or the growing collection of mercenaries at PSG and imagining he'll be near the top of the teamsheet speaks to the latter.

Perhaps before he commits to such a move he should seek out Ibrahim Afellay, the last flashy Eredivisie prospect who dominated the defensively weak Dutch league only to see his career stall after jumping to Barcelona before he'd developed enough to have a realistic chance of seeing consistent starting minutes.

Read More: Eriksen's £17M Transfer Fee Should Be Too Steep for Liverpool