Christian Eriksen has returned to the Inter Milan training ground for the first time since suffering a cardiac arrest in June while playing for Denmark during the European Championship.
The former Tottenham Hotspur midfielder collapsed on the pitch during Denmark’s opening Euro 2020 game against Finland on June 12. He spent six days in hospital, where he was fitted with an implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) — a type of pacemaker which can prevent fatal cardiac arrests by discharging a jolt to restore a regular heart rhythm.
Eriksen, who joined Inter in January 2020 and has made 43 Serie A appearances, met the club’s directors and staff, as well as his team-mates and the new manager, Simone Inzaghi.
A statement on the club website read: “Eriksen is doing well and is in excellent physical and mental shape. He will now follow the recovery programme put forward by Danish doctors in Copenhagen, who will also co-ordinate the clinical follow-up. The Inter medical staff will naturally be kept informed and up to date throughout the process.”
It is unclear whetherEriksen will be able to resume his playing career. Strict rules in Italy mean that he will not be able to play there unless the ICD is removed. The Italian newspaper Gazzetta dello Sport reported that Eriksen would undergo tests to determine whether he can have the device removed, with results expected in seven to ten days.
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The defender Daley Blind, formerly of Manchester United, has continued to play for Ajax and Holland since having an ICD fitted in 2019, so if it is not able to be removed Eriksen could potentially play outside of Italy.
