Christian Eriksen says it “felt good” to be back on the pitch for Manchester United against Everton at Old Trafford after returning from injury.
After being substituted against Reading in the FA Cup fourth round, manager Erik ten Hag named the midfielder to the matchday squad for the first time. Eriksen made his comeback on Saturday afternoon as a substitute for the final 30 minutes of the game after sitting out the previous 16 games.
The international player from Denmark took over for Jadon Sancho a few minutes after Anthony Martial, who had just been taken off the bench, had doubled United’s lead. Eriksen’s comeback was a temporary injury boost, but it was quickly overshadowed by the sight of Marcus Rashford hobbling off the pitch with what appeared to be a groin injury.
Eriksen posted on social media about making a long-awaited comeback to the team, despite the day coming to a depressing finish. “It was nice to go back out there!” After the game, Eriksen wrote a caption for an Instagram post.
Casemiro, David de Gea, Lisandro Martinez, Victor Lindelof, and Rashford—all United teammates—all offered encouragement by leaving comments on the player’s post. When his colleagues responded with emojis, United custodian De Gea simply wrote: “Is back.”
Giovani Lo Celso and Kyle Walker-Peters, who were Eriksen’s former teammates at Tottenham Hotspur, also gave him their congratulations on finishing his recuperation. As the team reaches the crucial stretch of the season, Eriksen’s decision will be a tremendous relief to United supporters.
With the first leg of United’s quarterfinal Europa League match against Sevilla on Thursday, the return arrives at the perfect time. Now that Casemiro has completed his ban, Ten Hag is probably going to gradually reintroduce Eriksen, but having a second middle option will be crucial in the run-up.