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 stadium shared a similar message which said: ‘The match is over. Christian Eriksen is in good condition under the circumstances.’
Fans inside the Nature Energy Park Stadium in Odense 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 provided fans with a further update in another statement.
It read: ‘Christian has it good and walked off the pitch himself. As I see it, he strengthens the pacemaker, which he 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 has it good, and he asked me to greet all the players and say that he was okay.’
Eriksen, who now plays for Wolfsburg after leaving Manchester United last year, received treatment for around 10 minutes, before he walked off the pitch to a standing ovation.
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.
‘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.’
In June 2021, Eriksen collapsed on the pitch during Denmark’s Euro 2020 match against Finland after he suffered a cardiac arrest when his heart stopped for roughly five minutes.
He received CPR and was taken to hospital where he was stabilised, with the midfielder later making an incredible return to football with Brentford just eight months later after being fitted with a defibrillator.
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