Roma bound Jose Mourinho ‘prayed and cried’ for Denmark midfielder Christian Eriksen, who collapsed mid-game on Saturday.

The former Tottenham coach oversaw Eriksen’s last months at Tottenham, before the Dane moved to Inter in January 2020.

Eriksen collapsed in the final minutes of the first half of Denmark’s 1-0 defeat to Finland last night and was given medical attention and CPR on the pitch before he was transferred to hospital.

The Denmark playmaker sent a message to the Inter and Denmark players, and the Danish FA had confirmed he was ‘awake and stable’ after the dramatic moments at Parken Stadium.

Marotta: ‘Eriksen sent Inter teammates a message’

Mourinho revealed he ‘prayed’ for his former player and stressed ‘we can celebrate Christian is alive’.

“Today, I cannot stop thinking about what happened yesterday,” Mourinho told talkSPORT. “I think it’s a day to celebrate, not to be sad.

“It was much more important than football but at the same time I believe that it also showed the good values of football.

“The love, the solidarity, family spirit. It was not just about his family, it was about the football family. Football bringing people together.

“I prayed yesterday, I cried yesterday, but how many millions did that around the world. I believe many because football can bring people together.

“Yesterday, for the wrong reasons football brought people together. In the end, we can celebrate Christian is alive.

“Of course, I didn’t speak with him, but I spoke with Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg this morning and Pierre is very positive about Christian.

“The news is good, so I think it’s a moment to celebrate.”

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