Player collapses at Euro tourney

COPENHAGEN — As Christian Eriksen lay unconscious on the soccer field, his pulse slipping away, Denmark team doctor Morten Boesen quickly realized there wasn’t a second to lose.

“He was breathing, and I could feel his pulse. But suddenly that changed,” Boesen said Saturday. “And as everyone saw, we started giving him CPR.”

The next 10 minutes were among the scariest to ever unfold during the UEFA European Championship. Several medics worked frenetically to give Eriksen chest compressions while his teammates choked away tears and formed a circle around the midfielder to shield the scene from public view.

Finally, the eerie silence that had descended around Parken Stadium was replaced with massive cheers.

“We managed to get Christian back,” Boesen said. “And he spoke to me before he was taken to the hospital.”

Eriksen was awake and in stable condition Saturday night after being taken to a Copenhagen hospital, the Danish soccer federation said.

His collapse, which happened in the 43rd minute of the match against Finland, led to the game being suspended for about 90 minutes before both teams made the decision to play on. Finland went on to win 1-0 after Joel Pohjanpalo scored in the 60th minute.

In the end, the result seemed merely an afterthought.

“Of course you can’t play a game with such feelings,” Denmark coach Kasper Hjulmand said. “What we tried to do was incredible. It’s incredible that the players managed to go out and try to play the second half.”

Hjulmand said the teams were given the option of finishing the game Saturday or resuming Sunday.

UEFA said both teams held an emergency meeting before deciding to continue playing. The players came back out onto the field to a huge ovation as they started warming up for a second time.