SM
England vs. Ireland: 15 hrs 3 mins
Upcoming predictions and previews
Collect News Data

Clive Clarke praises "phenomenal" reaction of heroes to Eriksen collapse

:Headline: Clive Clarke praises 'phenomenal' reaction of heroes to Eriksen collapse:
Clarke suffered a cardiac arrest which ended his career in 2007.
Sports Mole

Christian Eriksen's cardiac arrest must never be forgotten if sport wants to save lives, according to Clive Clarke.

Midfielder Eriksen collapsed during Denmark's opening Euro 2020 game with Finland on Saturday and needed to be resuscitated on the pitch.

Former Stoke defender Clarke suffered his own cardiac arrest during half-time while playing on loan for Leicester at Nottingham Forest in August 2007.

He was revived by quick-thinking staff and medics and, with Eriksen now recovering in hospital after needing a defibrillator, Clarke insists what happened needs to remain in the spotlight to save others.

He told the PA news agency: "You can't just draw a blanket over it and pretend it never happened. It does happen and unfortunately there are not as many people like myself and Christian who live to tell the tale.

"For the average person, they don't need to think about it. It goes to the back of their minds. Everyone will be talking about it this week but in two weeks they will be talking about who scored a goal in the semi-final of the Euros.

"That's life, things move on and people forget and talk about what's current.

"The good thing which will come out of this is that Christian makes a full recovery and that it shows these things are important to have in place, so there are even more defibrillators around the country and the world.

Clive Clarke made two appearances for the Republic of Ireland. (Mark Lees/PA)

"I've had hundreds of texts in the last few days asking 'are you OK? Has it brought back memories?'

"No, I live it every day. I have an internal defibrillator in my chest, I have a machine on the side of my bed and every time I wake up I look at my machine and it's a daily reminder of what happened.

"We all live in our own world and everything is in the fast lane these days."

The former Republic of Ireland international also called for defibrillators to be made mandatory at any sporting venue, including grassroots, after one helped save his life.

Sweden and Germany are among the teams to pay tribute to Eriksen. (Julio Munoz/Pool via AP)

"Not only football, any sport which is high intensity. I feel sometimes sport and governing bodies tick a box and do the bare minimum," said the 41-year-old, who is a patron for Cardiac Risk in the Young.

"This is proof you have to do that bit more by having the defibrillators ready for any sport – grassroots, schools, whatever it may be. They should be there and it should be made part of society where they are very easily accessible.

"A defibrillator, at any sporting venue, big or small, should be readily accessible. It should be mandatory. Then we know the incidents can be dealt with really swiftly.

"You can go further and say should people be taught at school and given the correct training which helps them to react in a positive way?"

Clarke was watching the game in Copenhagen, which Denmark lost 1-0 after it was controversially restarted 90 minutes after Eriksen's collapse, and instantly knew what had happened to the former Tottenham star.

"I saw it happen and knew it was the same as me, straight away I thought he'd had a cardiac arrest," Clarke said. "The way he fell and, to lose consciousness as he did, I felt straight away he's had what I had.

"I am one of the few who has had to live through that.

"The way the players, medical staff and referee reacted was first class. The way they reacted was phenomenal."

Clarke, now a football agent, never played again after his cardiac arrest at the City Ground and left Sunderland on medical grounds in 2008 having made 285 career appearances for Stoke, West Ham, the Black Cats, Coventry and Leicester.

Eriksen's future and prognosis is still to be determined but Clarke believes there must be a realism around his situation and the Inter Milan man needs to remain strong.

Christian Eriksen played for Tottenham for seven years. (Tim Goode/PA)

"The likelihood of him playing again after having a cardiac arrest is very low, that's just common sense," he said.

"It's a massive mix of emotions, it's the relief of waking up and knowing you're one of the lucky people who has survived, then you're told the likelihood of never playing football again is very high.

"A lot of players retire when it's right for them but with this it is instant. That was very hard for me to take and years later I still found that side of it really difficult.

"People don't see that psychological damage it does to you. Christian will not need to worry about the financial aspects because he is such a fantastic player but I did. I had to get back to work pretty quickly.

"If the worst-case scenario happens and he can't play again, hopefully he is OK and can sit back and think about the next stage of his career."

body check tags ::

amp_article__451422 : Collect and Make Data not in DataBase  : 
last updated article - 2021-06-15 10:03:56:
html db last update - 2021-06-15 10:03:56 :

ex - 7200 : read : write cache and make html

Click here for more stories about Christian Eriksen

Click here for more stories about Denmark

Share this article now:
DC
Read Next:
Christian Eriksen: 'I am fine - under the circumstances'
>


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
AL
Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!
Read more about Christian Eriksen Clive Clarke Football
Follow @SportsMole for the latest breaking news stories, and follow @sm_headlines to get every headline from Sports Mole
Recommended Next on SM
Christian Eriksen: 'I am fine - under the circumstances'
Wirtz wizardry helps Germany subject Bosnia-Herzegovina to heaviest-ever defeat
Is Havertz still Arsenal's best option? Three "standout" striker targets assessed
Preview: Serbia vs. Denmark - prediction, team news, lineups

Page options

Premier League Table
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool119112161528
2Manchester CityMan City117222213923
3Chelsea115422113819
4Arsenal115421812619
5Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest115421510519
6Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton115421915419
7Fulham115331613318
8Newcastle UnitedNewcastle115331311218
9Aston Villa115331717018
10Tottenham HotspurSpurs1151523131016
11Brentford115152222016
12Bournemouth114341515015
13Manchester UnitedMan Utd114341212015
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham113351319-612
15Leicester CityLeicester112451421-710
16Everton112451017-710
17Ipswich TownIpswich111551222-108
18Crystal Palace11146815-77
19Wolverhampton WanderersWolves111371627-116
20Southampton11119721-144
Scroll for more - Tap for full version


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
AL
Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!

Loading ...

Failed to load data.

history www

Amorim's "Jose Mourinho" part of fresh coaching set-up at Man United

1

A&

Dutch Delight: Impressive Netherlands progress to quarter-finals of Nations League

2

DD

Preview: CAR vs. Gabon - prediction, team news, lineups

NEW

3

PC

Preview: Morocco vs. Lesotho - prediction, team news, lineups

NEW

4

PM

Preview: Jannik Sinner vs. Taylor Fritz - prediction, head-to-head, tournament so far

5

PJ

How could Carsley make unwanted history in final England game?

6

HC

Wirtz wizardry helps Germany subject Bosnia-Herzegovina to heaviest-ever defeat

7

WW

Enzo Maresca "huge fan" of Bournemouth defender as Chelsea 'weigh up' potential offer

8

EM

"We'll see" - Gyokeres speaks out on Man United interest after Amorim move

9

&S

Amorim receives major boost ahead of Man United's trip to Ipswich

10

AR


. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .