Liverpool hero Jan Molby has backed their pursuit of Ajax midfielder Christian Eriksen. Molby wrote in the Liverpool Echo: "I take a special interest in Eriksen, of course, being a Dane who is forging his career at Ajax.

"And if suggestions that he might be ready to make the same move I did all those years ago, and join Liverpool, are true, then I think the Reds would be getting a very good player.

"Eriksen, at 21, is at the stage now where he needs to take the next step. Ajax is a great club for developing young players - the most prolific in Europe according to a new study - but you can't stay there too long.

"Eriksen's development has been sharp, and he is growing with every game he plays. Now, he needs to step up a level and test himself further."