Christian Eriksen visited his Denmark team-mates after his release from hospital following his cardiac arrest, reveals Kasper Schmeichel… as goalkeeper admits it was ‘important to erase the last image we had of him on the pitch’
Kasper Schmeichel has revealed how important it was for the Denmark team to see Christian Eriksen after he was discharged from hospital.
Eriksen suffered a cardiac arrest on the pitch in his country’s Euro 2020 opener against Finland that left him requiring 13 minutes of CPR as his team-mates formed a shield around him.
The 29-year-old midfielder was fitted with a implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) to regulate his heart’s rhythm, leaving Rigshospitalet a week ago after the successful operation.
Kasper Schmeichel has spoken of how important it was for the player to see Christian Eriksen
The midfielder visited the rest of the Denmark team after he was discharged from hospital
Eriksen visited the rest of the Denmark squad after his release from hospital and goalkeeper Schmeichel spoke to CNN about seeing his team-mate.
‘It was great to see him,’ Schmeichel said. ‘That helped a lot of the guys I think just to see him and erase the last image we had of him on the pitch.
‘To see him in real life and to see that he was okay…it was really important.’
Schmeichel revealed how much it helped the team to erase the last image they had of Eriksen
Denmark flew to Amsterdam ahead of their last 16 knockout clash with Wales on Saturday
Denmark secured their place in the last 16 with a superb 4-1 over Russia in their final group match to set up a knockout tie with Wales.
It’s the first time the team have left Copenhagen this tournament after playing all three matches so far at home, flying to Amsterdam to face Rob Page’s men.
The winner of that match will face either Holland or the Czech Republic in the quarter-finals in Baku on July 3, as Denmark look to continue what has been an incredible response to a traumatic couple of weeks.
Danish boss Kasper Hjulmand hailed Eriksen’s impact on the team even despite his absence, and revealed he wore a thin bracelet for the Russia match as a tribute to him.
Manager Kasper Hjulmand wore a bracelet on his right wrist against Russia in tribute to Eriksen
‘I have never gone with jewellery in my life,’ Hjulmand said. ‘This is the first time I’m wearing jewellery. There is a little football on it, ‘he added, pointing down at his right wrist.
‘It’s Christian who’s here, so we want to take him with us. I had him with me all the way. I think about him a lot.
‘As I have always said, he is our heart, our rhythm. We smashed through for his sake today. He is a great inspiration for all of us.
‘Not many of the players have played minutes on the pitch without Christian being in there. But we are super happy today. I am super grateful for the people and the support we have received.’