Moments of horror on Sunday evening, at the Denmark-Ukraine friendly! Christian Eriksen (34 years old), was close to death after collapsing on the pitch in the 65th minute without having been involved in a duel with an opponent. Before, he held his hands to his chest, where he had a pacemaker fitted. In 2021 something similar happened.
Nearby players reacted immediately and called for the game to be stopped. Medical teams rushed onto the field, while the Danish footballers formed a human shield around Eriksen to protect him during treatment. For several minutes, the stadium fell silent, and Eriksen’s teammates broke down in tears.
Eriksen left the field on his feet, accompanied by his colleagues from the Danish national team and members of the technical staff. Ukraine’s players stayed on the pitch and cheered, along with the crowd in the stands. Shortly after the incident, the referee decided to stop the match for good.
The Danish FA announced that Eriksen is conscious
The Danish Football Association said in a message published on social media that the footballer is conscious and doing well, given the circumstances. “Christian Eriksen is conscious and feeling well given the circumstances. The match has been cancelled,” was the message sent by the federation.
After the incident, the midfielder went to the ambulance with his wife, then he was taken to the hospital for further investigations.
Denmark’s national team doctor: “I think the device did exactly what it was supposed to do”
Morten Boesen, Denmark’s national team doctor, explained that the first indications are that Eriksen’s implanted heart device after the similar episode of his hero at the 2021 European Championship, when he was clinically dead for five minutes, may have triggered during the game. “From what I understand, the pacemaker would have gone off while he was in the game. I thought I saw him holding his chest and maybe even shouting to stop the match. Then he fell, and we immediately got to him,” Morten Boesen told TV 2 Sport.
The Danish doctor stated that Eriksen recovered quickly and the implanted device is being checked to determine exactly what happened in those moments. According to him, the device can provide essential information about the cause of the episode. “Now his cardiac device is being checked, because it can indicate the main reason. He regained consciousness quite quickly. I think the device did exactly what it was supposed to do: bring him back,” said the Denmark national doctor.
In 2021, at the European Championships, he was clinically dead 5 minutes after a similar episode
Christian Eriksen is one of the most important footballers in the history of the Danish national team. He has 152 caps and 46 goals scored for the first national team. In fact, he was awarded before the game for reaching the 150 milestone in his career.
The footballer also went through a dramatic episode in 2021, at the European Championship, during the Denmark-Finland match. Eriksen then collapsed on the pitch following a cardio-respiratory arrest and was resuscitated by medics. He was later fitted with a defibrillator, a device that allowed him to continue his career, but only in certain countries where playing with an implanted defibrillator is allowed.
