Getty Martin Braithwaite and the Denmark team
Barcelona striker Martin Braithwaite has said he experienced one of the scariest moments of his life on Saturday when Denmark teammate Christian Eriksen collapsed on the pitch against Finland during a Euro 2020 match.
Eriksen received CPR on the pitch at the Parken Stadium in Copenhagen and was subsequently stretchered off and taken to hospital. The match was abandoned but resumed later on Saturday after it had been confirmed Eriksen was stable.
Braithwaite was part of the Denmark team to play in the game and has spoken about the incident in a post on Instagram. He wrote, “Last night was one of the scariest moments of my life. My thoughts are with Christian, his wife, kids and family. I’m grateful that he’s stable and alive. Right now, that’s all that matters. Hope to see you soon my friend.”
Finland ended up winning the match 1-0. The only goal of the game came when Joel Pohjanpalo’s headed past Kasper Schmeichel following a cross from Jere Uronen. UEFA stated the match was restarted “following the request made by players of both teams.”
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Eriksen ‘Was Gone’ Says Team Doctor
Denmark team doctor Morten Boesen offered an update on Eriksen’s condition on Sunday at a news conference. Bosense confirmed the midfielder had suffered a cardiac arrest during the match, as reported by The Guardian.
“He was gone,” he said. “We started the resuscitation and we managed to do it. How close were we to losing him? I don’t know, but we got him back after one defib [defibrillation], so that’s quite fast.”
The team doctor also confirmed that the midfielder has undergone further tests which “so far look fine” and there is not yet any explanation as to what caused Eriksen’s cardiac arrest.
“They are now doing a series of tests at the hospital that can maybe give some of the answers him and I are looking for,” he added. “But he is awake and is answering questions clearly. His heart is beating again … the tests that have been done so far look fine. We don’t have an explanation to why it happened.”
Players Send Support To Eriksen
Eriksen’s collapse sent shockwaves around the world and saw support flood in for the Denmark midfielder. Inter teammate Romelu Lukaku sent a message after scoring in Belgium’s Euro 2020 win over Russia on Saturday.
The striker shouted into a pitchside camera, “Chris, Chris – I love you!” after bagging the opening goal and also sent his support after the match, as shown by Goal.
‘I spend more time with him than I do with my own family’
Romelu Lukaku sends support to Christian Eriksen 💙
Former Tottenham Hotspur team-mate Heung-Min Son also dedicated a goal to Eriksen after scoring for South Korea against Lebanon in World Cup qualifying, as shown by Asian Football.
“Hey Christian, stay strong, I love you!”
Son Heung-min ran to the camera to dedicate his goal to Christian Eriksen. 🇰🇷🇩🇰
Meanwhile, the Danish FA confirmed on Sunday that Eriksen had been in touch with his teammates with a post on Twitter.
“This morning we have spoken to Christian Eriksen, who has sent his greetings to his teammates. His condition is stable, and he continues to be hospitalised for further examination. The team and staff of the national team has received crisis assistance and will continue to be there for each other after yesterday’s incident.”
Denmark is due to play again on Thursday against Belgium.
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