Less than nine months after the world of football held its breath, waiting for Christian Eriksen to get his breath back, the Dane has returned to playing for the national team, scoring a goal in the 4-2 defeat against the Netherlands in the friendly played on Saturday at the Johan Cruyff Arena in Amsterdam.
Source: AFP
Coming off the bench at half-time, the Brentford attacking midfielder didn’t wait two minutes, but on his second touch of the ball, he scored a great goal, with power from inside the area to the top corner, his 37th goal in 110 matches with the national team.
Eriksen has made this comeback on the same pitch where he took his first professional steps, wearing the Ajax shirt for four brilliant seasons, between 2009 and 2013.
During the first half, Eriksen watched the game closely from the bench, as coach Kasper Hjulmand had planned, and entered the pitch after the break.
Applauded by the Dutch public and by ‘Oranje’ coach Louis van Gaal as he entered the pitch, Eriksen raised his hands to the sky in thanks.
Incisive and author of several technical gestures, in addition to the goal he hit the post with a splendid long shot. He jumped at the sight of him that he was enjoying his return to normality, after the incident that occurred on June 12, 2021.
That day, Eriksen collapsed in the 42nd minute of the match against Finland in the group stage of the European Championship, and was unconscious for five long minutes.
After having a defibrillator implanted, Eriksen resumed training in Odense, with his training club and later with the Ajax academy, maintaining the hope of being able to resume a paralyzed career in his best years.
Without that opportunity in Italy, Eriksen was released from his contract with Inter Milan and signed a contract until the end of the season with newly promoted Brentford, a team with whom he has already played three Premier League games since the end of February.