Saturday’s tie between Brentford and Newcastle saw the Magpies produce a much-needed win in their relegation fight, backed by a solid performance that saw them extend their unbeaten run in the Premier League to 7 games.
Having gone down to 10 men inside the first 10 minutes, Brentford never really got going throughout the game managing just one shot on target from a total of three attempts. However, Saturday’s loss paled in comparison to the major story of the evening which saw Danish international Christian Eriksen make his return to football 8 months after the unfortunate events of Euro 2020.
The 30-year-old midfielder came on at 52 minutes to receive an astounding ovation from both sets of supporters present at the Brentford Community Stadium.
259 days after that terrible day… Christian Eriksen is back! ❤️🇩🇰 #Eriksen
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) February 26, 2022
Time for standing ovation. What a moment!@mattdw97 🎥⤵️pic.twitter.com/hvoIWj6NZ9
He had a decent outing in that short while, having 36 touches of the ball and producing one key pass as he looked to be the exact source of creativity in the middle of the park that Brentford seemed to be missing.
He also showed no signs of having lost any of his magic as put Ivan Toney bearing down on goal with a peach of a half-volleyed pass from the halfway line.
@ChrisEriksen8 that’s filth 👏 pic.twitter.com/pJ2735gp3L
— Marc (@Marc_Arns10) February 26, 2022
After he collapsed on the pitch against Finland, many thought the player would not be able to make a return to professional football following the heart condition. Eriksen had to leave his former club Inter due to the Italian league’s ban on the use of heart defibrillators by footballers.
But against all odds, Eriksen is back that too in one of the best leagues in the world and he revealed post-match how much it meant to him.
“If you take away the result, I’m one happy man. To go through what I’ve been through, being back is a wonderful feeling. It’s been very special since day one. Brentford have taken good care of me. Everyone’s been really happy about it and everyone’s been really helpful,” were the player’s words as per the report by the Guardian.
On a night when the Bees endured a painful defeat due to the red card, Eriksen’s debut remains a memory to cherish and Brentford fans would be hoping that the Dane would help them stay in the Premier League this season.