BERN: Denmark playmaker Christian Eriksen has set himself a target of returning to international football at the World Cup finals in Qatar in November and December.

Eriksen has been released by Italian champions Internazionale after the Italian authorities ruled that he could be allowed to play on with the heart device fitted after his near-death collapse during Euro 2020 in the summer.

In a video message Eriksen has thanked well-wishers for all the expressions of concern he received while in hospital after collapsing during Denmark’s game against Finland.

He said: “It was great that many people felt the desire to write to me or send me flowers. It had an impact that many people felt the need for my family and I to know.

“In the hospital they kept telling me that flowers were arriving for me. It was strange, because you don’t expect people to send them to you for having been dead for five minutes. It was something amazing and very kind. It was a help for me to receive all those good wishes.”

Now his priority is returning to the action.

He said: “My goal is to play the World Cup in Qatar. That has been my way of thinking from the beginning. If I am going to be selected it is something else, but my dream is to return . . . to play and show that I’m back at the same level. “

Eriksen is currently training with Chiasso of the Swiss third division.

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