Christian Eriksen lays the ghost of Euro 2020 to rest with Denmark goal against Slovenia

Christian Eriksen kicked off his Euro 2024 campaign by scoring Denmark's first goal of the tournament on Sunday evening, three years after he suffered a life-threatening cardiac arrest in his last European Championship appearance.

The midfielder had collapsed on the pitch during his county's Euro 2020 opener against Finland on home soil in Copenhagen. Teammate Simon Kjaer helped save Eriksen's life by putting him in the recovery position, while urgent medical assistance arrived and resuscitation and defibrillation began.

Thankfully, those interventions proved decisive. Eriksen, stretchered off and transferred to a nearby hospital, survived the ordeal and, in his words, was 'fine under the circumstances'. A few days later, the player was fitted with an implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD), although it did mean he could no longer represent Inter, with such devices banned in Serie A.

Released by Inter, Eriksen resumed his career with Brentford in January 2022 and less than a year after his collapse was back in a Denmark shirt. He moved onto Manchester United at the end of that season and his selection for Euro 2024 marked a sixth major international tournament.

As a result, emotions were understandably high when Eriksen walked out with his Denmark colleagues to face Slovenia in Group C's first game.

Less than 20 minutes in, Eriksen broke the deadlock with a goal of fine quality. Receiving the ball from a long throw-in, Jonas Wind deserved credit for flicking a first time pass into Eriksen's path as he burst into the penalty area. Eriksen took it on his chest and then poked a half volley into the bottom corner, prompting scenes of jubilation in the Danish end of Stuttgart's MHPArena.

Overall, it was a game that never really got going and otherwise lacked much quality in the key moments. Denmark enjoyed the lion's share of the ball, yet failed to consistently test Slovenian goalkeeper Jan Oblak by firing most of their many shots off target.

Rasmus Hojlund, who partnered Wind up front, had one of the few efforts on target but Oblak was equal to it when the Manchester United striker met Victor Kristiansen's cross a few yards out. That save later proved to be crucial in determing the end result.

Slovenia hadn't done much to worry Kasper Schmeichel at the other end, yet they grew into the game as time ticked by. Benjamin Sesko, the talk of so much transfer gossip in the build-up to the tournament, rattled the post from a distance in a warning sign for the Danes. Only moments later came the equaliser from left-back Gornik Janza, from similar range on the half volley.

Given how the game began and their level of control for over an hour, Denmark will consider this to be two points dropped. For Slovenia, in their first European Championship appearance in 24 years, they proved to have the capability and will take confidence going ahead.

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