Christian Eriksen has signed for Brentford on a six-month deal, making a remarkable return to the Premier League just seven months after suffering a cardiac arrest.
Eriksen left Inter Milan in December by mutual consent after being suspended by the Italian medical authority from playing in Serie A due to a rule prohibiting the use of an implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) device he has had fitted.
It's Official, @ChrisEriksen8 is a Bee
🇩🇰 The Danish international will link up with Bees for rest of season
📄 https://t.co/6cDQ91l2dl#BrentfordFC #EriksenJoins pic.twitter.com/r57bj2FLJp
— Brentford FC (@BrentfordFC) January 31, 2022
The 29-year-old was implanted with the ICD after he suffered a cardiac arrest during Denmark’s Euro 2020 match against Finland in Copenhagen. He has completed all the necessary medical checks and is fit to return to football.
Eriksen has said his heart is “not an obstacle” to get back playing – and in England athletes are given the autonomy to decide themselves whether or not to continue on the balance of risk.
It is not illegal in the UK for Eriksen to play with an ICD and he will become the first ever to play with one in the Premier League.
Before signing for Brentford, Eriksen had been training just over the border in southern Switzerland and stepped up his preparations for a return last week by training with his former side Ajax.
Eriksen will move to Brentford with a strong Danish connection at the club. Manager Thomas Frank and international team-mates Christian Norgaard and Mathias Jensen are among many known to Eriksen.
The midfielder will be moving back to London after spending six-and-a-half years at Tottenham before leaving for Inter in 2020.