The Italy players were watching in shock as Christian Eriksen had cardiac massage on the pitch, with his Inter teammate Nicolò Barella led away in tears.

Denmark were playing against Finland in their opening group game when Eriksen suddenly collapsed and his heart stopped beating.

Documentary Sogno Azzurro aired on RAI 1 this evening and captured the moment the Italy players were watching the game on a tablet ahead of a training session.

Domenico Berardi had been watching first and told the others what was happening.

Leonardo Bonucci leaned over with evident worry, as did Jorginho, but Gianluigi Donnarumma couldn’t even make himself watch as the events unfolded.

The members of staff asked if Eriksen had been struck by the ball first, something to prompt the collapse, but there was no trigger.

“I’ve got goosebumps,” said Berardi.

Donnarumma covered his eyes and looked the other way, later telling the documentary crew what he felt at that moment.

“It was terrible. I was in shock. We saw it happen live, as we had just left the locker room for some treatment and we were watching the game. I couldn’t even look. The others were watching and I was so shaken I couldn’t watch. I felt empty inside.

“The most important thing is that Christian is feeling better and I hope to see him on the pitch as soon as possible.”

Barella is one of the only Inter players in the Italy squad and Bonucci led him away visibly upset, having been told what had happened.

Eriksen was eventually revived and had surgery to implant a miniature defibrillator, but it remains to be seen if he will be allowed to continue playing in Serie A with that heart condition.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Tickets Kit Collector