Milan defender Simon Kjaer has won the FIGC award named after Davide Astori and has been inducted into Italy’s Hall of Fame after saving Christian Eriksen’s life last summer.
The Dane provided life-saving aid to his compatriot during their country’s UEFA Euro 2020 opener against Finland. Eriksen collapsed on the pitch due to a heart attack and Kjaer was the first person to help, giving CPR.
For this reason, he has received an award named after former Fiorentina captain Davide Astori, who died in his sleep before a Viola Serie A match against Udinese in March 2018.
“I remember Davide very well on the pitch,” Kjaer told the FIGC official website.
“And I remember very well his tragic death. Stefano Pioli and my teammates spoke to me about him and I know that his death was shocking for everyone in Italian football. We are still very sad because of it. To receive an award named after him means a lot to me. It makes me happy and proud. To me, it’s an opportunity to honour his name.”
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Milan coach Pioli was in charge of Fiorentina when Astori died at the Hotel Là di Moret in Udine.
Kjaer went on to talk about the day he saved Eriksen’s life. It was June 12 at the Parken Stadium in Copenhagen.
“Some of that moments will remain inside me forever,” he admitted.
“The most important thing is that Christian feels well now. He is with his family and is doing the thing he loves: playing football.
“I must admit that it’s a closed chapter for me and I am not too willing to continue talking about it. What happened that day is the result of efforts from players and medics. We were all there for Christian. Out of respect for the FIGC and Davide, I am talking about it again now.
“When I ran toward him, I had no idea I had had a heart attack. The only thing I was thinking about was to reach him as soon as possible to help him. If you see something strange, you must act immediately. Being quick is crucial. Do what you can do as quickly as possible and then leave it all in the hands of qualified people. We were lucky that day because doctors were really close to the incident.”
A Kjaer il premio FIGC intitolato a Davide Astori: «Felice di poter onorare il suo nome» https://t.co/8bSmCbFpqR pic.twitter.com/Wy9x3pXpR6
— Calcio e Finanza (@CalcioFinanza) April 12, 2022