We certainly would have hoped for a different review of the first day of EURO 2020 action with BVB involvement. Fortunately the worst fears on Saturday evening regarding Danish midfielder Christian Eriksen did not come to pass. There is great relief that the 29-year-old is doing well under the circumstances. More positive news arrived late on Saturday night, as BVB defender Thomas Meunier had a big role to play in helping his highly-favoured team get off to a successful start to their EURO campaign. 

The incident involving midfielder Christian Eriksen in the match between Denmark and Finland served to illustrate how quickly sport becomes a trivial matter when a person is fighting for their life. Eriksen collapsed on the pitch of Copenhagen's Parken Stadium shortly before the half-time break. The entire football world was in shock - until the first assurances were given by the Danish association shortly after Eriksen was taken away. Initial reports indicated that the player was conscious, stable and on his way to hospital.

After a pause of approximately two hours, the Nordic duel in Group B got back underway. Denmark's eventual 1-0 loss to underdogs Finland seemed insignificant in the circumstances. Black & Yellow midfielder Thomas Delaney came on as a substitute in the 76th minute. However, his most important act of the day was not a footballing one. Delaney was the man who called his teammates together to form a cordon around teammate Christian Eriksen as he was given CPR with the world's TV cameras watching on. 

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The second game of Group B saw Belgium face Russia in St. Petersburg. Thorgan Hazard was the only BVB player included in the Belgium starting line-up, but it was nonetheless a Dortmund teammate who took centre stage: Thomas Meunier came on as a substitute in the 27th minute to replace Castagne and made an immediate impact on the game. In the 34th minute, Russia goalkeeper Shunin was unable to hold on to a Hazard cross, and the BVB right-back was well-placed to pounce on the loose ball and make it 2-0 to the Red Devils, for whom Romelu Lukaku had opened the scoring in the 10th minute. 

Two minutes before the final whistle, Lukaku found the back of the net once more to put the icing on top of a 3-0 win. The assist was provided by Meunier. The third Black & Yellow in the Belgium squad, Axel Witsel, wasn't included in the matchday squad after his long period of absence due to a ruptured Achilles tendon.

Manuel Akanji suffered slight disappointment with the Switzerland national team. Despite taking a 1-0 lead, the Swiss, for whom Akanji played the full 90 minutes on the right of a three-man defensive line, ended up drawing 1-1 with Wales. 

On Sunday, two further Borussia players - Jude Bellingham and Jadon Sancho - will get started in the tournament. The Dortmund duo's England team will get their EURO campaign underway with a clash against Group D rivals Croatia in London's Wembley Stadium (kick-off 15:00 CET).