Christen Eriksen announces his desire to continue playing, aims for the 2022 World Cup

Christian Eriksen has made it clear that he intends to play football again and wants to represent Denmark at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

Eriksen has been outcast since he suffered cardiac arrest during a Euro 2020 match and subsequently had to be fitted with a defibrillator. Now a free agent, the midfielder says he’s back in top form and wants to show his national team boss that he still has what it takes to align himself with his country.

Almost six months have passed since Eriksen’s collapse on the field, which occurred on June 12, 2021. Several players on the Danish national team, including captain Simon Kjaer and defender Daley Blind, have spoken about the mental struggles that have faced since the incident. . Still, today is the first time Eriksen has spoken publicly at length about the incident on the field and his intentions to move forward.

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What did Eriksen say about playing soccer again?

In a video posted on Twitter, Christian Eriksen made his first formal announcement about his intentions to play professional soccer again.

“My goal is to play in the World Cup in Qatar. I want to play,” Eriksen said in an interview with Danish television. “That has been my way of thinking from the beginning. It is a goal, a dream.”

“Whether I will be chosen is something else, but my dream is to return,” he said. “I’m sure I can come back because I don’t feel different. Physically, I’m in top shape. That has been my goal and there is still a while. Until then, I’m just going to play football.” and show that I have returned to the same level. “

“[The national team is] very important. I want to play for the national team at the World Cup. My dream is to rejoin the national team, to play for Parken again and to show that it was only one time and that it will not happen again. I want to show that I have moved on and that I can play for the national team again. Again, it is up to the manager to assess my level, but my heart is not an obstacle.

Eriksen continued to thank everyone who supported him, both during his incident and in the months after.

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“It was amazing that so many people felt the need to write or send flowers,” she said. “It had an impact on so many people and they felt the need to let me and my family know. That makes me very happy. At the hospital, they kept saying that I had received more and more flowers. It was strange, because I did not expect people to send Flowers, because she had died for five minutes. It was quite extraordinary, but it was very kind of everyone and it has been a great help for me to receive all those best wishes.

“And people still write to me. I have thanked the people I have met in person. I have thanked the doctors, my teammates and their families in person. But to all the fans who have sent thousands of letters and emails and flowers, or who have approached me on the street both in Italy and Denmark, I thank you all for the support I received from everyone who helped me overcome this. “

Where could Eriksen play again?

The only country Christian Eriksen would definitely not be able to play in is Italy, having been released by Inter due to the country’s strict restrictions on playing with an internal defibrillator. His agent also ruled out MLS or the Australian A-League for “family reasons.”

From there, it is unknown, since his agent did not want to give more details.

“It is too early to say where the future of Christian is”, Martin Schoots. told Sky Sports in mid December. “Due to a special regulation in Italy, which has already existed for decades, the only thing we know for sure is that it will not be in Italy. And it will not be on another continent, for family reasons. Some clubs have already contacted us a few weeks ago. We have “We have to see what the future holds. But it looks bright and that’s the most important thing.”

Former clubs Ajax and Tottenham have been suggested for obvious reasons, with Spurs pushing for a top four position in the Premier League and Ajax in the knockout phase of the Champions League. Ajax also currently employs their Danish teammate Daley Blind, who is also equipped with an internal defibrillator.

Newcastle United and Leicester City are other Premier League destinations that make sense, while a return to his native Denmark could also be on the cards, as Eriksen has trained with his childhood club’s OB as he returns to form. physical over the past few months.