5 Incidents Of Tongue Swallowing In Football And Simon Kjaer's Quick Action Toward Christian Eriksen

Simon Kjaer and the Denmark squad are praying for the recovery of Christian Eriksen who collapsed and almost swallowed his tongue (Twitter @@DBUfodbold)

JAKARTA - Christian Eriksen collapsed in the opening match of Group B Euro 2020 when Denmark hosted Finland at Parken Stadium, Copenhagen, Saturday, June 12 night.

The Inter Milan midfielder fell unconscious in the 43rd minute following a throw-in situation in the Danish left-wing area.

Referee Anthony Taylor immediately stopped the game to give the medical team a chance to do their job.

Before the medical team arrived, Simon Kjaer as captain of Denmark swiftly provided first aid to Eriksen. He made sure his partner's tongue was not swallowed.

Mange børn sad med deres forældre og så landskamp lørdag aften, hvor Christian Eriksen kollapsede. Det var voldsomt for alle at se.

Børns Vilkår har lavet en række gode råd til dig, der skal tale med dit barn om hændelsen. Den kan være brugbar for mange.https://t.co/vKEsMjTaxE pic.twitter.com/Zy39a6pM5c

— DBU - En Del Af Noget Større (@DBUfodbold) June 13, 2021

Incidents of tongue swallowing is not the first time that happened in football. Several well-known names in the world of round skin have experienced this deadly event. Anyone?

Hilton Moreira (Persipura)

The Liga 1 match between Persipura Jayapura and PSM Makassar at the Mandala Stadium, Jayapura on June 4, 2018 featured an event that almost took the life of Persipura striker Hilton Moreira.

Hilton almost died after suffering a swallowing tongue after colliding with PSM goalkeeper Rivky Mokodmpit in the final minutes of the match. Unconscious, PSM defender Abdul Rahman Sulaeman who was near Hilton immediately took the initiative to open his mouth and pulled out the Brazilian's tongue.

Hilton's life was saved and the player continued the match. This eastern Indonesia derby match ended with a score of 1-1.

Oleg Gusev

In the Ukraine League match between Dinamo Kiev and Dnipro in March 2014, Dinamo captain Oleg Gusev collided with Dnipro goalkeeper Denys Boyko, causing him to lose consciousness. At that time, Gusev's neck hit Boyko's knee so he had difficulty breathing because he swallowed his tongue.

The opposing team's midfielder, Jaba Kankava who was near Gusev immediately reacted by inserting his finger into Gusev's throat so that the oxygen supply returned smoothly even though his finger was bitten by Gusev. This Georgian player received appreciation from the Dinamo players for this heroic action. Moreover, Gusev's life was saved.

John Terry

John Terry, also had a similar incident. In the 2007 English League Cup final between Chelsea and Arsenal, Terry, who tried to head in an Arjen Robben corner, dropped a diving header, but his face was accidentally kicked by Abou Diaby.

Terry's tongue was reportedly swallowed by Diaby's hard kick, Jose Mourinho even said his team had stopped breathing. A few minutes later Terry was seen moving, he was carried off the field on a stretcher using an oxygen mask and neck and head support. Terry was then taken to Cardiff Hospital.

Martin Berkovec

Bohemians 1905 player, Martin Berkovec, also experienced the same thing. In the 2017 Czech Republic Premier League match between Bohemians 1905 and FC Slovacko, Berkovec was knocked unconscious after colliding with his own teammate. Francis Kone, the opposing club's attacker immediately provided first aid by correcting the location of Berkovec's tongue not being swallowed or bitten.

For Kone, this is not the first time he has helped a player who has swallowed a tongue. Previously, Kone had done the same thing while playing in the Thai league, Czech, and twice in the African league.

Fernando Torres (Atletico Madrid)

Fernando Torres was knocked unconscious during Atletico Madrid's match against Deportivo La Coruna in the 2016-17 season after being hit in the back of his head by Alex Bergantinos. Torres fell headfirst into the ground.

Seeing the former Liverpool and Chelsea player swallow his own tongue, the players of both teams moved quickly. Someone grabbed Torres' jaw, then opened his mouth to give him some air. Torres' partner, Gabi tried to correct the location of Torres' tongue as KOne did above. Torres' life was saved.