Breaking News: Eriksen collapses during Euro 2020 match
Denmark midfielder Christian Eriksen was given chest compressions after collapsing on the field during a European Championship game against Finland.
Eriksen fell to the ground near the sideline late in the first half and was immediately surrounded by medical personnel. His teammates formed a shielding wall around him to give him privacy as the medics treated him.
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Eriksen collapses during Euro 2020 match
Ukraine midfielder Oleksandr Zinchenko says playing in the Dutch capital at the European Championship will bring back some happy memories.
The Manchester City defender spent a season on loan at Dutch club PSV Eindhoven before moving back to England permanently.
Zinchenko says the season at the Philips Stadium was “a great career push. That was the first time I met European football and the experience was really valuable to me.”
Zinchenko plays at left back for City but is expected to switch to the central midfield for Sunday’s match against the Netherlands at the Johan Cruyff Arena.
He says he is happy to play wherever coach Andriy Shevchenko puts him.
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Eriksen collapses during Euro 2020 match
Heavy rain in Bucharest has soaked the National Arena field and prevented Austria and North Macedonia from training ahead of their European Championship game.
Some Austria players warmed up and cooled down by diving headlong into the water pools.
Training was canceled to protect the playing surface for Sunday’s opening Group C match.
UEFA says both teams have headed to Steaua Bucharest’s stadium in the city to practice. Austria has first use of it. North Macedonia will be an hour later.
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A party atmosphere is building in Copenhagen an hour before Denmark faces Finland at the European Championship.
Denmark is hosting a major tournament game for the first time and 15,000 fans will be allowed into the Parken Stadium for the Group B opener. A large number of them were already on hand to greet goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel and his two backups with a loud ovation when they walked onto the field to start warming up.
Thousands of fans also gathered in a nearby park to sing songs and drink beer hours before the game.
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Kieffer Moore scored late to help Wales hold Switzerland to a 1-1 draw in Group A at the European Championship.
Moore had his head wrapped in red bandages after an early collision and then used it to nod in a cross from Joe Morrell in the 74th minute after a short corner.
Switzerland dominated possession and wasted a string of chances before Breel Embolo headed in the opening goal in the 49th off a corner from Xherdan Shaqiri.
Switzerland substitute Mario Gavranovic volleyed the ball into the Welsh net late but it was ruled out for offside on a video review.
Italy leads Group A at Euro 2020 after its 3-0 win over Turkey on Friday.
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The national soccer teams from Wales and Switzerland both took a knee before their European Championship match got started in Baku.
Wales has committed to taking a knee before games at Euro 2020 to protest racism. England is doing the same.
Scotland has pledged it will be “taking a stand against racism” at its two home games in Glasgow and will kneel before the match against England in London.
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The national soccer teams from Wales and Switzerland have begun warming up in front of near-empty stands in Baku ahead of their Group A match at the European Championship.
Up to 31,000 fans are allowed for Euro 2020 games at the Olympic Stadium but attendance may fall short of that.
Relatively few fans of either team have made the journey to Azerbaijan.
A group of Wales fans chanted as their team was announced and their voices echoed around the stadium.
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Netherlands captain Georginio Wijnaldum says Dutch players will not take a knee in an anti-racism gesture before their opening European Championship match against Ukraine on Sunday.
Wijnaldum says the team already is involved in anti-racism initiatives with the Dutch soccer federation and has decided not to take a knee at the Johan Cruyff Arena because they have not done it in other recent games.
Wijnaldum says the team already does a lot to promote an anti-racism message but adds “it is never enough until it (racism) has stopped.”
Sections of fans have booed England players when they took a knee before two Euro 2020 warm-up matches.
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Netherlands coach Frank de Boer says defender Matthijs de Ligt is not ready to play in the team’s opening European Championship match against Ukraine on Sunday.
De Ligt is recovering from a groin injury but has been training with the team in recent days. He said earlier this week he hoped to be able to play Sunday in the Netherlands’ first major tournament match since the 2014 World Cup.
But De Boer says “it is a bit too early. We don’t want to take any risks. We have two more group matches.”
He did not say who would replace the Juventus defender in the starting lineup for the team’s Euro 2020 opener. The Netherlands already is missing center back and captain Virgil van Dijk with a long-term knee injury.
De Boer says he expects De Ligt to be available for the next match against Austria on Thursday.
The Netherlands will play all three of its Group C matches at the Johan Cruyff Arena in Amsterdam.
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Spain has sent home the 17 extra players it called up this week to form an alternative squad after a coronavirus outbreak had threatened to infect the team at the European Championship.
Six players with previous experience with the national team and 11 players from Spain’s under-21 team were called up by coach Luis Enrique after captain Sergio Busquets tested positive for COVID-19 on Sunday.
Diego Llorente also tested positive on Tuesday but he has returned to the squad after four consecutive negative results.
The extra players left a day after the squad was vaccinated and following three consecutive days of negative tests for the entire group.
The 23-man squad for Euro 2020 practiced together for the first time this week.
Spain plays its opening match against Sweden in Seville on Monday.
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Eriksen collapses during Euro 2020 match
The European Championship moves to Baku on Day 2 of the tournament before heading to Copenhagen and then St. Petersburg.
The first match on the day’s Euro 2020 schedule will be between Wales and Switzerland in Baku. Italy beat Turkey 3-0 in the other Group A match on Friday in Rome.
The middle match pits Denmark against Finland in Copenhagen in Group B. And the final game of the day in that same group will be between Belgium and Russia in St. Petersburg.
The European Championship began a year late because of the coronavirus pandemic but is still being called Euro 2020. Read more sports news
