Denmark, and former Tottenham star, Christian Eriksen collapsed to the ground with a cardiac arrest during the Euro 2020 fixture with Finland – and a leading cardiologist says it appears highly unlikely he will take to the pitch again.
That’s the verdict of a leading sports cardiology professor who worked alongside the midfielder at Tottenham, with strict protocols in place now after the cardiac arrest to prevent him taking to the pitch in future.
Eriksen’s scary ordeal occurred in the first half of the Group D fixture in Copenhagen on Saturday, with the 29-year-old rapidly treated by emergency medics immediately after having collapsed to the ground.
The Inter Milan star was then subsequently rushed to hospital, where his condition stabilized and he was even able after that to make a call to his teammates and urge them to resume the match, which Finland won 1-0.
While the great news is that Eriksen “will live”, no reputable medical practitioner would allow him to play again, according to professor Sanjay Sharma, who chairs the FA’s expert cardiac consensus group.
Sharma told the PA news agency: “Clearly something went terribly wrong. But they managed to get him back, the question is what happened? And why did it happen?
“This guy had normal tests all the way up to 2019 so how do you explain this cardiac arrest?”
The professor added: “I’m very pleased. The fact he’s stable and awake, his outlook is going to be very good.
“I don’t know whether he’ll ever play football again.
“Without putting it too bluntly, he died today, albeit for a few minutes, but he did die and would the medical professional allow him to die again? The answer is no.
“The good news is he will live, the bad news is he was coming to the end of his career, so would he play another professional football game, that I can’t say.
“In the UK he wouldn’t play. We’d be very strict about it.”
While it has not been confirmed Eriksen underwent a heart attack, everything points to the playmaker having suffered a cardiac arrest, as he required resuscitation on the pitch.
Whether he would be able to play again, the fact is that the Dane will retire when the time comes after having enjoyed a glittering career at the top of the European game.
Eriksen came through the ranks with Ajax before spending six-and-a-half seasons with Spurs. He joined Inter last year and won Serie A with the Italian giants this campaign.