The footage of Denmark’s midfielder Christian Eriksen collapsing on the pitch on Saturday and receiving chest compressions as stunned fans at Copenhagen’s Parken Stadium looked on was shocking.

The player was said to be “awake” and had been rushed to hospital where he was being stabilised on Saturday night.

It is not yet known what caused Eriksen to collapse and his heart to apparently stop, but it is not the first time football has seen witnessed such scenes.

The BBC were criticised after the feed of the game continued live as Christian Eriksen was attended to by medics.

Gary Lineker was forced to apologise live on air before the game concluded in Copenhagen.

Speaking to the media in a post-match presser Denmark’s manager Kasper Hjulmand praised his players for the way they reacted to the terrible situation with Christian Eriksen and commeded them for playing on even though most were ‘emotionally done and emotionally exhausted.’

“First of all, if it gets emotional, it’s been a tough night.” said Hjulmand: “We are all reminded of what the most important thing in life is - to have valuable relationships, people we’re close to, our family and our friends.

“We have a group of players that I cannot praise enough. I couldn’t be prouder of those people who took such good care of each other. He is one of my very dear friends, the way the players talked in the dressing room to decide to not do anything before we knew Christian was conscious and OK.

“We had two options to play the game [today] or tomorrow at 12pm and everyone agreed to play today. You can’t play a game with such feelings. We tried to win. It was incredible they managed to go out and try to play the second half.

“Honestly, there were players out there that were completely done. Emotionally done and emotionally exhausted.”

Denmark’s head coach Kasper Hjulmand was understanably emotional in the post-match news conference. Tears welled in his eyes as he spoke of the devastating events that unfolded on the pitch concerning Christian Eriksen and which recontextualised the meaning of football for all involved.

He said: “It was a really tough evening, on which we’ve all been reminded what the most important things in life are. It’s meaningful relationships. It’s those people who are close to us. It’s family and friends.

“Everything, everything, everything - all thoughts are with Christian and his family.”

Christian Eriksen is more than just the most naturally-gifted Danish player in a generation. He is Denmark’s figurehead and guiding force, the reason why many pundits tipped Kasper Hjulmand’s side as having the potential to upset the tournament’s favourites, then perhaps even repeat their shock triumph at Euro 92.

One of the doctors who treated Bolton Wanderers footballer Fabrice Muamba has said it will take time to establish whether Christian Eriksen can make a complete recovery.

Cardiologist Dr Sam Mohiddin said doctors would have to consider if there has been any damage or permanent injury as a result of the 29-year-old’s suspected cardiac arrest.

For once, the words ‘football family’ did not seem like a cynical cliché. When Christian Eriksen lay still on the grass of the Parken Stadium in Copenhagen, the world held its breath.

The horror of the situation was evident on the faces of Eriksen’s Denmark team-mates. The Finland players were stunned, too. Fear and devastation overwhelmed the sidelines and the stands.

Finland boss Markku Kanerva spoke to the media in the wake of his team’s 1-0 victory over Denmark in an emotional game in Copenhagen. He touched on the fact that it was Finland’s first ever game in a European Championship and of course the welfare of Christian Eriksen.

“It was a very emotional night for us.” he said: “First time in a major tournament and an opening game against Denmark in their home stadium. When we heard the national anthems, it was very emotional for us.

“And then what happened with Christian Eriksen - a very dramatic and sad incident. And then finally, we get a good result from the game.

“Of course I am happy for that. Unbelievable. We are going to remember this for a long time for different reasons.”

Romelu Lukaku opened the scoring for Beligum in their Group B clash with Russia this evening. He celebrated by running to the cameras and shouting “Chris, Chris, I love you!”

Lukaku and Christian Eriksen are teammates at Inter Milan and Lukaku’s dedication came after Eriksen collapsed during Denmark’s match with Finland.