Man Utd star spotted with mystery black eye and leaves fans concerned
Midfield talisman Christian Eriksen turned up for Denmark's recent training camp sporting a shiner ahead of their Euro 2024 qualifiers, with Manchester United fans wondering what happened
Fans are scratching their heads as to what could have caused Christian Eriksen's black eye after the Manchester United midfielder rocked up for Denmark duty with some nasty bruising.
The 31-year-old's left eye was at least partially closed, and pictures posted on the Danish FA's Instagram account appeared to show some signs of stitching. One caption (translated from Danish) appeared to confirm as much, reading 'has been sewn and is ready' over a picture of Eriksen stretching with both thumbs up.
The mystery eye injury - believed to have happened in Monday's training session - also didn't seem to impede the playmaker as he took part in Tuesday's sessions. Denmark host Northern Ireland on Friday before travelling to Slovenia on Monday.
Kasper Hjulmand's side opened their Euro 2024 campaign with a 3-1 win over Finland before suffering a shock 3-2 defeat away to Kazakhstan. However, Eriksen was sidelined for both of those fixtures due to an ankle injury.
It may be the 120-cap veteran - who once spent almost a year out of the international game following his on-field cardiac arrest at Euro 2020 - has to wear a protective mask if he's to feature in this weekend's fixtures.
United fans were quick to share concern for their star after he played a critical role in their run to third this Premier League season. Some even suggested a disgruntled Erik ten Hag may have been to blame for the blow.
"What [the f***] has happened to Eriksen’s eye," wondered one suspicious supporter. "Ten Hag clearly was happy."
"Who burst Eriksen's eye," asked another fan taken aback by the extent of the knock.
The Danish dynamo arrived at Old Trafford as a free agent in July 2022 and had an instant impact in Ten Hag's plans. Eriksen struck up a particularly potent partnership alongside fellow new arrival Casemiro, with the team habitually performing better whenever that pair were fully fit.
The Red Devils won the League Cup in Ten Hag's debut campaign and qualified for next season's Champions League. However, even Eriksen was unable to prevent the team coming off second best to rivals Man City in the FA Cup final, shortly before Pep Guardiola's men completed the Treble.
Just days after the club campaign came to a close, Eriksen is due back in action as the road to Euro 2024 resumes. And it's already proving a bumpy one for the puppeteer in particular, picking up a fresh wound on his first day back at the international office.