Christian Eriksen targets World Cup ‘dream’ after recovering from cardiac arrest

By George Ramsay, CNN

Danish footballer Christian Eriksen says his goal is to play at this year’s FIFA World Cup in Qatar after recovering from the cardiac arrest he experienced last year at Euro 2020.

Eriksen collapsed during Denmark’s game against Finland in Copenhagen last June and received life-saving treatment on the pitch.

Following the incident, he was treated in hospital and fitted with an Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillator (ICD) device, a type of pacemaker intended to prevent fatal cardiac arrests by discharging a jolt to restore regular heart rhythm.

He now says that his heart is “not an obstacle” when it comes to his ambitions to return to football.

“My goal is to play in the World Cup in Qatar. I want to play. That’s been my mindset all along,” Eriksen said in an interview with Danish broadcaster DR1.

“It’s a goal, a dream. Whether I’ll be picked is another thing. But it’s my dream to come back. I’m sure I can come back because I don’t feel any different. Physically, I’m back in top shape.”

At the end of last year, Eriksen was training at Odense Boldklub, the Danish club he played for as a youth footballer before joining Dutch side Ajax.

The future of his playing career is currently unclear. Being fitted with a defibrillator meant he was unable to play in Italy due to Italian football regulations, and the 29-year-old parted ways with former club Inter Milan in December.

“My dream is to rejoin the national team and play at Parken (in Copenhagen) again and prove that it was a one-timer and that it won’t happen again,” said Eriksen.

“I want to prove I’ve moved on and that I can play on the national team again. Again, it’s up to the manager to assess my level.”

This year’s World Cup takes place in November and December. Having reached the semifinals of Euro 2020 last year, Denmark went on to earn a spot at Qatar 2022 by topping its qualifying group.

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Following his collapse and throughout his recovery, Eriksen said he has been overwhelmed by the support he received.

“It had an impact on so many people and they felt a need to let me and my family know. That makes me very happy,” he added.

“At the hospital, they kept saying I’d received more and more flowers. It was weird because I didn’t expect people to send flowers because I’d died for five minutes.

“It was quite extraordinary, but it was very nice of everyone and it’s been a big help to me to receive all those best wishes.

“And people still write to me. I’ve thanked people I’ve met in person. I’ve thanked the doctors, my teammates and their families in person.

“But all the fans who have sent thousands of letters and emails and flowers or who have come up to me on the street both in Italy and Denmark, I thank them all for the support I got from all over the world that helped me through this.”

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CNN’s Kim Norgaard contributed reporting.