EURO2024
Victory lost: Eriksen mourns “another story”
1100 days ago, Christian Eriksen collapsed due to cardiac arrest during the European Championship match against Finland. Photo
© Tom Weller/dpa
The fairytale return has come to nothing. Christian Eriksen and Denmark have to be content with one point against Slovenia. An award cannot save the mood.
The frustration over the missed opening victory overshadowed Denmark’s football star Christian Eriksen is delighted with his own goal on his return to the European Championship stage.
“It would be a different story if we had got the three points,” said the 32-year-old after the 1-1 (1-0) draw against Slovenia. 1,100 days earlier, he had collapsed due to cardiac arrest in the European Championship match against Finland. “I knew that was an important goal and I was happy to help the team,” said Eriksen after the match.
The Danes squandered their lead and had to settle for one point in their first game at the tournament in Germany. “The energy has dropped, we have lost the intensity,” said Denmark coach Kasper Hjulmand.
However, the former Mainz Bundesliga coach supported his leading player Eriksen, who had been the target of a lot of criticism after a difficult season at Manchester United. “I know the criticism, but I never had any doubts about him as a footballer. Everyone knows his qualities and he is the heart of our team.”
Slovenia’s coach Matjaz Kek also praised the Danish midfielder, who was named player of the match. “We were naive when we conceded the goal. But Eriksen is a world-class player. It was to be expected that he would take the chance.”