Christian Eriksen is in ‘good spirits’ despite on-field collapse during match

By Ben Church, CNN

(CNN) — Denmark soccer star Christian Eriksen is in “good spirits” and is expected to leave hospital soon after collapsing on the pitch during his nation’s friendly against Ukraine on Sunday.

Eriksen, who five years ago suffered a cardiac arrest on the field at Euro 2020, was seen clutching his chest before falling to the floor during the Denmark’s international friendly.

The Danish soccer federation said Eriksen temporarily lost consciousness but was able to walk off the pitch before undergoing tests at a nearby hospital.

“I spoke with Christian this morning, and he is doing well,” Denmark’s national team doctor Morten Boesen said in a statement released by the Danish FA on Monday.

“He is with his family and is in good spirits. The expectation is that he will be discharged soon and can return home.”

The incident brought back memories of Eriksen’s medical emergency on the pitch back in 2021. The soccer player collapsed on the pitch during his team’s opening Euro 2020 match against Finland, before being resuscitated from cardiac arrest.

He was subsequently fitted with an Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillator (ICD) device – a type of pacemaker intended to prevent fatal cardiac arrests by discharging a jolt to restore regular heart rhythm – and eventually returned to play top-flight soccer after less than a year.

Boesen said Eriksen had “very quickly regained consciousness” on the pitch on Sunday and that the pacemaker “is beating as it should.”

Denmark’s match against Ukraine was subsequently abandoned.

The 34-year-old will not be playing at this year’s World Cup after Denmark failed to qualify for the 48-team tournament. Eriksen currently plays for German side VfL Wolfsburg.

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