Christian Eriksen calls his return to football with Brentford ‘a miracle’ as he looks forward to playing for the first time after suffering a cardiac arrest on the pitch at Euro 2020

Christian Eriksen has called his return to football ‘a miracle’ as the midfielder declared his thanks for everyone who helped him recover following a heart attack on the pitch during Euro 2020.

Eriksen collapsed on the pitch at the Parken Stadium in Copenhagen during Denmark’s opening game against Finland, leading to the game being suspended with many fearing for the player’s life.

He was also expected to retire from football after he agreed to end his contract with Inter Milan in December, but only one month later Brentford made the stunning announcement that they had agreed to sign the 29-year-old.

Christian Eriksen has described his return to football with Brentford as a ‘miracle’

Eriksen has not played since suffering a cardiac arrest during a Euro 2020 game with Denmark

It is not yet known when Eriksen will be able to make his Brentford debut and he is not expected to feature against Crystal Palace on Saturday, although he cannot wait to return to the pitch.

‘It has been a long build-up and it still is going to be a long build up from day to day. It feels like it is getting closer and [I am] patient for the right timing,’ Eriksen told BBC Sport.

‘But it is going to be very special to be able to walk out on the pitch and play a match again after probably, at the time, seven or eight months since that happened. It is going to be amazing.’

Asked whether his return to football was a miracle, the Dane added:  ‘Definitely. I think it will get more and more obvious the closer it gets to being in a real game – being in a stadium, being in a game, you get all the emotion and adrenaline from that.’

Brentford signed Eriksen  after he ended his contract with Inter Milan by mutual consent

Whenever he does start playing again, Eriksen will be wearing a pacemaker known as an implanted cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD), which he had fitted after suffering the cardiac arrest against Finland.

Serie A rules forbid players from wearing an ICD, forcing Eriksen to leave Inter. But the Premier League has no rules against wearing the pacemaker and Eriksen is totally relaxed about playing, safe in the knowledge that the ICD will regulate his heart.

‘I have been cleared to do everything from the doctors, so in that sense it doesn’t really matter what was the reason,’ he added.

‘Continuously I have been given the green light that everything is OK for the future.

‘I don’t really have any scared feelings about it, I don’t feel my ICD so if it gets hit I know it is safe enough. I am not scared of the challenges ahead and the bullies in the game, no.’

Eriksen also gave thanks to everyone helped him recover from the cardiac arrest and got him on the road back to playing.

Eriksen had to leave Inter as Serie A rules forbid players from wearing pacemakers

‘The first thing is to show the gratitude. To the people around me, the team-mates, the doctors first on the pitch, the team doctors and paramedics and then at the hospital, to do everything and check everything,’ he said.

‘I am very lucky and I have told them face to face, I am very happy they did what they did otherwise I would not be here.

‘For me it was unlucky in a lucky place. I wouldn’t hope anyone to get it, I never thought I would get it myself when it happened but in the place it happened I was lucky with the people around me acting so quickly. I was really grateful the doctors were in that place.

‘It was lucky I had all the possibilities around me. They had all the possibilities to get me back as quickly as they did and I am 100% grateful for that.’