Separated by the Baltic Sea, Denmark vs Finland in Copenhagen was billed to be a very special encounter and close to 16,000 people were set for a delightful evening. For 40-odd minutes, it was the case as both sides gave it their all.
But the mood changed rapidly, to shock, despair, tears and plenty of prayers, as fans world over went through the emotional rollercoaster while medics administered CPR on Christian Eriksen, who collapsed while trying to receive the ball from a throw-in.
The incident happened in the 42nd minute with teammates and referee Anthony Taylor quickly calling for help. The Danish team formed a ring around him as the medics tried to resuscitate Eriksen.
A while later, Eriksen was taken off with white sheets on either side and UEFA suspended the match. After news filtered in that Eriksen was stable in hospital and had spoken to his teammates, UEFA announced the match would be restarted, close to 2 hours after the incident, on the request of the players from both sides.
"We have been in contact with him and the players have spoken to Christian," said Peter Moller of the Danish Football Association.
"He is doing well and they are playing the match for Christian," Moller said.
Finland eventually edged out Denmark 1-0, with Joel Pohjanpalo scoring his country’s first goal at a major tournament. Finland, who have never qualified for a World Cup and was playing the European Championship finals for the first time as well.
Denmark then had the chance to equalise when Paulus Arajuri was adjudged to have brought down Yussuf Poulsen as the Dane chased a through ball into the penalty area from Thomas Delaney. But Pierre-Emile Højbjerg’s penalty was saved by Lukas Hradecky.
The game was scoreless when Eriksen collapsed just before halftime in their Group B clash. The crowd at the Parken stadium in Copenhagen sang the Danish national anthem and shouted "Christian Eriksen" while they were waiting for news about the player.
Before Eriksen's worrying collapse, it was Denmark who were dominating proceedings, with Finland goalkeeper Lukas Hradecky saving Jonas Wind's 20-yard effort and a header Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg.
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