Christian Eriksen collapsed on the pitch during Denmark’s friendly against Ukraine on Sunday, almost five years after he suffered a cardiac arrest at Euro 2020.
Midway through the second half, Eriksen clutched his chest and fell to the ground before medical personnel rushed to the midfielder’s aid in terrifying scenes.
Players formed a huddle around him and the match was subsequently abandoned, with Eriksen taken to hospital with his wife Sabrina by his side.
A statement from the Danish FA later revealed that the midfielder was ‘conscious’, and said: ‘Christian Eriksen is conscious and doing well in the circumstances. The match has been called off.’
The big screen inside the Nature Energy Park Stadium in Odense shared a similar message which said: ‘The match is over. Christian Eriksen is in good condition under the circumstances.’
Fans also started to sing Eriksen’s name as he received treatment and clapped.
Christian Eriksen collapsed on the pitch during Denmark’s friendly against Ukraine on Sunday
Around 10 minutes later, Danish national team doctor Morten Boesen – who saved Eriksen’s life in 2021 – provided fans with a further update.
He said: ‘Christian is doing well and walked off the pitch himself. As I see it, the pacemaker responded as it should.
‘He was briefly unconscious, but regained consciousness very quickly, and we were quickly in contact with him.
‘Now he will be examined further at the hospital to find out what caused the incident.
‘We are in ongoing contact with him and the doctors at the hospital. But Christian is doing well.
‘He asked me to send his regards to all the players and tell them that he was OK.’
Eriksen, who now plays for Wolfsburg in Germany after leaving Manchester United last year, received treatment for around 10 minutes, before receiving a standing ovation as he made his way off the pitch.
Former Denmark star Nicklas Bendtner was covering the game as a pundit on Danish TV and he fought back the tears as he tried to work out what to say when the incident happened.
‘These are horrible pictures, and it completely overshadows the rest of the evening,’ he said.
‘My thoughts are with the family and the children, and it’s a difficult situation to be in right now.
‘This is the second time it has happened, and as Christian’s friend also… it’s really terrible.’
Several of Eriksen’s Denmark team-mates broke down tears on the pitch, before players from both sides helped escort the midfielder off the pitch while holding up a privacy screen around him.
In June 2021, Eriksen collapsed on the pitch during Denmark’s Euro 2020 match against Finland after suffering a cardiac arrest when his heart stopped for roughly five minutes, with the 34-year-old later saying that he had ‘died for five minutes’.
He received CPR and was taken to hospital where he was stabilised.
However, the midfielder made an incredible return to football with Brentford just eight months later after being fitted with a defibrillator implant into his heart – which Boesen claimed may have saved his life this time around.
Reflecting on the terrifying incident to BBC Sport in 2022, Eriksen said: ‘I can remember everything apart from the five minutes.
‘I was told afterwards it was five minutes, otherwise I remember everything – the throw in, the ball hitting my knee and then I don’t know what happened after.
‘Then I woke up with people around me and felt the pressure on my chest, trying to get my breathing back, and then I woke up – I opened my eyes and saw people around me, I didn’t really understand what was going on.
‘At that time I had no idea what had happened, then it goes through my head: “Did something happen with my legs? Did I break my back? Can I lift my leg up?” – all small things I was trying to do to see what happened.
‘Then in the ambulance I heard someone say “how long was he out for” and someone said “five minutes” and that was the first time I had heard I was gone.’
Denmark had been 2-1 up in the clash on Sunday after goals from Man United star Patrick Dorgu and Joakim Maehle, with Viktor Tsygankov pulling one back for Ukraine.
The game was a friendly after both sides lost in the World Cup play-offs in March to miss out on this summer’s tournament.
MORE TO FOLLOW
