Christian Eriksen has given his first statement after suffering a cardiac arrest on the soccer field during Denmark's Euro 2020 game with Finland.
Soccer fans all over the world sent their best wishes to Eriksen and his teammates after the 29-year-old midfielder collapsed during the 43rd minute of the Denmark vs Finland Euro 2020 game.
Taking place at the Parken Stadium in Copenhagen, the game was suspended as medics attended to the motionless Inter Milan star.
The soccer star has now given fans an update on his wellbeing, insisting he "feels better" and "won't give up".
Eriksen thanked fans for their support as he vowed to get to the bottom of why he experienced such a sudden and serious health emergency in a short statement released to Italian newspaper Gazzetta dello Sport via his agent. His statement read:
"Thank you, I won't give up. I feel better now - but I want to understand what's happened.
"I want to say thank you all for what you did for me."
Eriksen remains in hospital in Copenhagen with his wife and parents at his bedside.
Eriksen's wife rushed onto the field as his emotional teammates formed a barrier around the player as he received medical attention.
As he was carried out of the stadium on a stretcher, Eriksen appeared to be conscious. An update posted to the official UEFA Twitter page revealed that he was in a stable condition in hospital.
Captain Simon Kjaer and goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel have visited their teammate in hospital.
Eriksen's agent said: "Now he just has to rest, with him are his wife and parents. He will remain under observation. But in any case, he wants to cheer on his teammates against Belgium."
Meanwhile, Denmark’s team doctor, Morten Boesen, claims Eriksen "was gone" before the midfielder was resuscitated on the soccer field.
He said: "We started the resuscitation and we managed to do it. How close were we to losing him? I don’t know, but we got him back after one defib, so that’s quite fast. How quickly they reacted was decisive I would say.
"The time from when it happens until he receives help is the most important factor. And that was a short period of time. That was decisive. They are now doing a series of tests at the hospital that can maybe give some of the answers he and I are looking for. But he is awake and is answering questions clearly."
"His heart is beating again… the tests that have been done so far look fine. We don’t have an explanation as to why it happened," Boesen added.
