It is unknown if the Inter playmaker, who collapsed during his country’s opening game of the tournament, will attend the festivities this weekend
Christian Eriksen, his wife and the half-dozen medical staff who attended to him following his cardiac arrest have been invited to the Euro 2020 final by UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin.
The Denmark playmaker collapsed during the first half of the Group B opener against Finland and was rushed to hospital after resuscitated on the field at Parken Stadium.
It is currently unknown whether Eriksen will make the trip to Wembley Stadium from his home country, where he continues to recover, though the six medics are expected to attend as guests on Sunday.
What has been said?
Though UEFA have not officially made an announcement as to the invitation, paramedic Peder Ersgaard – one of the team who rushed to attend to Eriksen after he dropped to the turf a handful of minutes before the interval in Copenhagen last month – confirmed that he and his fellow professionals has accepted the offer.
“You look forward [to it] as a child does to Christmas Eve,” he told Fagbladet. “It’s a great feeling that you can be surprised that way, and it is a surprise; I never saw this coming. It completely swept my legs away from underneath me.”
Ersgaard, who added that he was unsure who had made the final call on invitations – his partner Christian Norskov who also attended the scene, was not invited – was quick to praise the actions of his fellow professionals, adding: “I am very proud of what I did that day, but it was a team effort, not a one-man performance. It will be two anniversaries that I will never ever forget.”
Will Eriksen attend?
Eriksen and his partner Sabrina Kvist Jensen “have been invited by the president in person”, a UEFA spokesperson told AFP.
“We don’t know if they will come or will prefer to rest,” the spokesperson added.
The bigger picture
Eriksen would possibly get the chance to see Denmark reach a first major final since they shocked the world to win Euro 1992 if they defeat England at Wembley on Wednesday.
The victors will encounter either Spain or Italy in north London, with the last two sides due to meet on Sunday.
Kasper Hjulmand’s side, already highly motivated following the Inter man’s forced abdication from their squad, have emerged as one of the surprise packages of the tournament and remain fully convinced they can shed their underdogs tag in style.
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