Danish international Christian Eriksen made a dramatic return to football on Saturday, less than nine months after suffering a cardiac arrest episode on the pitch at Euro 2021.
The upsetting scenes of Eriksen collapsing in Denmark’s group stage game against Finland in June went down as the enduring image of the competition.
As the Danish players formed a protective ring around their star man, medics revived the former Tottenham midfielder, before he was stretchered off to begin his long road to recovery.
Eriksen’s return to professional football has been a difficult road for the 30-year-old, as Inter Milan terminated his contract since rules in Italy blocked him from playing due to an implanted cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD).
Following his release from the Italian champs, Brentford reached out with a short-term contract offer at the start of 2022, as Eriksen looks to start all over again.
Eriksen plays vs. Newcastle after cardiac arrest
Brentford boss Thomas Frank confirmed Eriksen would feature at home to Newcastle on Saturday in a club debut for his new playmaker.
Wearing the No. 21 shirt, he came on in the 52nd minute in place of Mathias Jensen as the Brentford crowd gave him a standing ovation.
Christian Eriksen makes his return. ❤️
— NBC Sports Soccer (@NBCSportsSoccer) February 26, 2022
He is making his first appearance after suffering a cardiac arrest on the field during the Euros last summer.#MyPLMorning | #BRENEW pic.twitter.com/vpyb8cqfPs
Christian Eriksen is back! 🇩🇰🐝#BrentfordFC #BRENEW pic.twitter.com/fz2MnCpbwi
— Ahmed (@Ahmed__Demha) February 26, 2022
Christian Eriksen makes his Brentford debut, eight months and 14 days after collapsing at the Euros. pic.twitter.com/QwS6mbwSul
— Sam Dean (@SamJDean) February 26, 2022
Eriksen on to a standing ovation from the crowd and claps from the players #BrentfordFC #BRENEW pic.twitter.com/Ol9Q27yiA8
— Sonia Twigg (@twiggsonia) February 26, 2022
Christian Eriksen makes first competitive appearance since heart attack at Euro 2020
— Thierry Nyann (@nyannthierry) February 26, 2022
Fighter👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾 pic.twitter.com/UpehoFDEgL
He went the final 38 minutes of the match, he had 36 touches (54 percent passing accuracy on 13 of 24 per SofaScore) and lost possession 19 times.
Unfortunately, he couldn't help 10-man Brentford find a way back in the match after an early red card to Joshua Dasilva. Newcastle won the match 2-0.
Eriksen came through two behind-closed-doors friendly games in the lead-up to the Newcastle match which capped a full month of training to build his match fitness.
Frank stated his positivity about the impact of Eriksen on his squad with the Bees looking to edge away from the relegation zone in the coming weeks.
Why Eriksen left Inter and signed for Brentford
Eriksen’s Inter contract was effectively nullified by the Serie A due to his surgically-implanted defibrillator device (ICD) with the club officially confirming the decision in December 2021.
However, the banning of ICD devices is not common practice in other major European leagues, and Eriksen was subsequently permitted to join another club outside of Italy as a free agent.
During the gap in between the Serie A ruling and Inter’s decision on his contract, between October and December, Eriksen returned to his native Denmark and began training with former club OB.
Eriksen’s plan was to maintain his fitness, ahead of a return to professional football, before agreeing a move to Brentford in late January.
After two weeks of training, Eriksen played in two club friendly games against Southend and a Rangers XI this month, with two assists in a 2-2 draw in the latter match.
Those eye-catching performances have convinced Frank he is now ready for a Premier League comeback.
Eriksen's return to Premier League
Eriksen starred with Tottenham Hotspur before making the move to Inter Milan in Italy. He joined Inter in January 2020 after indicating his intention not to sign a contract extension to his expiring deal with Tottenham.
His time in North London established him as one of the best creative midfielders in Europe after Spurs beat off strong competition to sign him from Ajax in 2013.
Despite not winning a major trophy with Spurs -- they lost in the 2015 EFL Cup and 2019 Champions League finals -- Eriksen’s individual record was superb.
A total of 51 Premier League goals (69 across all competitions) in six-and-a-half seasons, placed Eriksen joint-seventh on Spurs' all-time Premier League goal scorer list.
Eriksen's heart problem: Cardiac arrest at Euros
Eriksen’s collapse against Finland on June 12 caused a shockwave through the competition and the wider football community.
The rapid response of the Danish national team medical staff and teammates Kasper Schmeichel and Simon Kjaer undoubtedly saved his life in Copenhagen.
As reports began to filter through of Eriksen responding positively to treatment on the field, both sets of fans chanted his name when the game restarted, with the result of the match taking a complete back seat at Parken Stadium.
With Eriksen’s condition improving in the following 48 hours, UEFA made the call not to postpone games, as a united Denmark march on to reach the semi finals.
