“It’s something that remains in my heart, but, slowly, I need to move on.”
Simon Kjaer has stated that it is time for him to ‘move on’ from the part he played in saving Christian Eriksen following his collapse in the summer, but insisted that he will ‘never forget’ what happened.
The AC Milan and Denmark defender received deserved praise from people around the world for his rapid response to Eriksen collapsing during the Danes’ Euro 2020 group stage match against Finland.
The Danish captain was quick on the scene and performed emergency first aid before team doctors could reach Eriksen, who it was later revealed had suffered a cardiac arrest.
Following that, he instructed his team-mates to form a protective shield around the Inter Milan midfielder, before consoling Eriksen’s wife, who had come pitchside.
However, five months after the incident in Copenhagen and with Eriksen continuing his rehab in his native Denmark, Kjaer believes that the time has come for him to move past the harrowing incident.
“It’s something that remains in my heart, but, slowly, I need to move on, although I respect all the questions about it. It’s something that I will never forget,” Kjaer stated, as per Football Italia.
“It’s something very personal, luckily it ended well, otherwise I wouldn’t be here now.
“The most important thing is that he feels well. The focus has always been on the pitch. Now I will try to move on.”
Although the 32-year-old wants to move on from what happened, he still received praise at the Ballon d’Or ceremony in Paris on Monday night.
Simon Kjaer est mis à l’honneur pour son comportement exemplaire lors de l’EURO 2020. #BallonDor pic.twitter.com/5uHwXbeTWB
— Vibes Foot (@VibesFoot) November 29, 2021
Chelsea legend Didier Drogba, who was one of the presenters at the ceremony, took the opportunity to praise the Milan defender.
“This man is a hero, this is bigger than football and us,” said Drogba.
“Kjaer saved the life of his partner, Christian Eriksen. Not all superheroes wear capes.”
Kjaer was named 18th on the list of Ballon d’Or nominees after an impressive year at both club and international level.
This season, Milan have made a positive start to their Serie A campaign – currently finding themselves in second position, three points behind league-leaders Napoli.
Stefano Pioli’s side also have a chance to qualify for the Champions League knockout stages, thanks to their victory over Atletico Madrid last week.
Related links:
- Jurgen Klopp pays special tribute to Simon Kjaer for Eriksen heroics
- Denmark stars praised for saving Christian Eriksen after collapse in Euro 2020 match
- Christian Eriksen issues first public statement after on-pitch cardiac arrest
