DENMARK are LEADING Czech Republic following Thomas Delaney’s header from a corner after just five minutes.
The Danes have been superb since the harrowing events involving Christian Eriksen earlier in the tournament, while the Czechs stunned Holland in the last-16.
- Kick-off time: 5pm UK
- TV channel: ITV1
- Live stream: ITV Hub
- Czech Republic team: Vaclik, Coufal, Celustka, Boril, Kalas, Holes, Soucek, Barak, Masopust, Sevcik, Schick.
- Denmark team: Schmeichel, Christensen, Kjaer, Vestergaard, Stryger Larsen, Maehle, Hojbjerg, Delaney, Damsgaard, Dolberg, Braithwaite.
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GOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAALLLLL!!
THOMAS DELANEY HEADS DENMARK IN FRONT!!CZECH REPUBLIC 0-0 DENMARK
4. Moments after Coufal registers the first attempt of the game, a shot blocked by Delaney, Denmark go up the other end and win the first corner of the contest.
CZECH REPUBLIC 0-0 DENMARK
2. Maehle takes an early whack from the Soucek battering ram in the Czech midfield, and needs a moment or two to regain his composure.
In the meantime, it’s worth pointing out that today the Danes are in all white, the Czechs wear red shirts with blue shorts.
CZECH REPUBLIC 0-0 DENMARK
1. The game begins with Clive Tyldesley quite rightly pointing out the absurdity of playing this match in Azerbaijan, close to 2000 miles from either Denmark or the Czech Republic.
However, for whoever wins here, Euro 2020 glory will feel a hell of a lot closer.
PEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP!
HERE WE GO!HERE COME THE TEAMS!
The now-customary giant decorative shirts are removed from the pitch, the Danish one emblazoned with the name of Christian Eriksen, and then it’s over to the players.
Simon Kjaer, the heroic leader of this Danish side, brings his teammates out to a warm welcome from fans and weather alike in the Olympic Stadium in Baku.
Simultaneously, Tomas Soucek, Czech Republic’s captain this evening, leads his team out on to the pitch, where they line up for the playing of the two national anthems.
CLOSE TO KICK-OFF
It’s nearly time for the third of Euro 2020’s quarter-finals.
Will it be Denmark or Czech Republic that prevail in Baku?
LIKE FATHER, LIKE SON?
Goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel became a legend for his integral part in helping Denmark win the 1992 European Championships – and now his son is hoping to follow suit 29 years on.
Kasper Schmeichel will earn his 70th cap this evening, and it could well prove to be the biggest game of his international career.
CZECH OVERHAUL
For a supposedly smaller footballing nation, the Czech Republic have a fine record at the European Championships, having qualified for every tournament since splitting from Czechoslovakia in 1993.
And in their very first competition, at Euro ’96, the Lokomitiva were a golden goal away from emulating the Czechoslovakian side that lifted the trophy in 1976.
Since then, the Czech Republic have reached the semi-finals in 2004, and the quarter-finals eight years later.
Now their head coach Jaroslav Silhavy has the latest generation of Czech talent on the brink of another memorable tournament following a major overhaul.
Only three members of this year’s Czech Republic squad — goalkeeper Tomas Vaclik, captain Vladimir Darida and defender Pavel Kadarabek – remain from those that flopped in France at Euro 2016.
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FOUR-MIDABLE DANES
Having begun their Euro 2020 campaign with one goal and a pair of defeats from their opening two games, Denmark have really hit their stride at these finals.
Sealing their place in the knockout stages with a 4-1 victory over Russia in their final Group B game, the Danes followed it up by thrashing Wales 4-0 in the Round of 16.
In doing so, Denmark became the first team in European Championship history to score 4+ goals in consecutive matches at the competition.
Of course, how much their shaky start was to do with the awful scenes surrounding Christian Eriksen’s hospitalisation in their opening match against Finland, we are unable to say.
Eriksen’s teammates have done him proud since, and their nine goals so far at this tournamentt are second only to the ten they notched at the 1986 World Cup.
DENMARK SUBSTITUTES
16 Lossl, 22 Ronnow, 2 Andersen, 7 Skov, 11 Skov Olsen, 13 Jorgensen, 15 Norgood, 16 Wass, 19 Wind, 20 Poulsen, 21 Cornelius, 24 Jensen
DENMARK XI
Kasper Hjulmand sticks with the same starting XI that swept Wales aside in Amsterdam. It means captain Simon Kjaer is able to continue in the back three despite suffering with a muscle problem in the latter stages of Saturday’s win. Kasper Dolberg hit a double against the Welsh, and is selected again to play up top of Hjulmand’s 3-4-2-1 shape with support coming from Martin Braithwaite and Mikkel Damsgaard.
1 Schmeichel; 6 Christensen, 4 Kjaer, 3 Vestergaard; 17 Stryger, 23 Hojbjerg, 8 Delaney, 5 Mahle; 9 Braithwaite, 14 Damsgaard; 12 Dolberg
CZECH REPUBLIC SUBSTITUTES
16 Mandous, 23 Koubek, 2 Kaderabek, 4 Brabec, 8 Darida, 11 Krmencik, 14 Jankto, 17, Sima, 20 Vydra, 21 Kral, 24 Pekhart, 25 Pesek
CZECH REPUBLIC XI
It’s one change for the Czech Republic ahead of this teatime’s tie in Baku with Jan Boril, back from suspension, coming in at left-back for Pavel Kadarabek. It means their available-again skipper, Vladimir Darida, must make do with a place on the bench, and so West Ham’s Tomas Soucek takes the armband. His Hammers teammate Vladirmir Coufal plays at right-back, Bristol City’s Tomas Kalas is at centre-half, and at the head of Jaroslav Silhavy’s 4-2-3-1 is four-goal Patrik Schick.
1 Vaclik; 5 Coufal, 3 Celustka, 6 Kalas, 18 Boril; 9 Holes, 15 Soucek; 12 Masopust, 7 Barak, 13 Sevcik; 10 Schick
THE TEAMSHEETS ARE IN!
SLICK SCHICK
After enduring a difficult spell at Roma in the last 2010s, everything has fallen into place for Patrik Schick over the past 18-months.
While the world began to get to grips with the global pandemic, Shick made the move to the Bundesliga and hasn’t looked back.
Having flourished for both RB Leipzig and, now, Bayer Leverkusen, the 25-year-old has continued with his goalscoring form on the international stage.
Schick has scored 15 goals in 30 appearances for the Czech Republic, and has netted four goals in four games so far at Euro 2020. Only five players have ever scored 5+ goals in their first European Championships; these include compatriot Milan Baros in 2004, and, most recently, Antoine Griezmann five years ago.
Shick also finds himself one goal behind Griezmann when it comes to left-footed strikes. The forward has notched three times with his left peg at the finals, and is only one off the record for left-footed that was set by the Frenchman at Euro 2016.
GREAT DANE
Danish wonderkid Mikkel Damsgaard celebrates his 21st birthday today, and he will be hoping to end his special day by also celebrating a place in the European Championship semi-finals.
The Sampdoria playmaker has certainly lived up to his reputation since breaking on to the international scene last year. Damsgaard has been directly involved in seven goals during his six appearances for Denmark, scoring three and providing an assist for four more.
In Demark’s 4-0 thumping of Wales in the Round of 16, Damsgaard created more chances (3) than any of his teammates.
BAKU AND BEYOND
Today’s Euros quarter-final is a trek for almost all the players and fans involved.
The game is taking place in Baku’s Olympia Stadionu in Azerbaijan.
Not a cloud in the sky for those fans flying in from afar.
Credit: Getty Credit: Getty HAVE SOME PRIDE
Uefa has asked its main sponsors, including carmaker Volkswagen, not to display advertising banners in the rainbow colours of the LGBTQ community in Baku and Saint Petersburg for Euro 2020 matches, citing compliance with local laws.
The German manufacturers said in a statement: “Due to Uefa’s concerns about the legal framework for venues in Russia and Azerbaijan, the association informed us it wouldn’t be possible to use rainbow-coloured advertising on billboards in Saint Petersburg and Baku.”
A spokesman said that while Uefa “fully supports” messages of “tolerance and respect”, it asks sponsors “to ensure that their design complies with local legislation and this was not the case in Baku and Saint Petersburg”.
Germany’s gay and lesbian association expressed their fury at Uefa stance.
Spokesman Alfonso Pantisano said: “Uefa’s audacity and deceit are boundless. With this action, it is betraying not only lesbians, gays, bisexuals, trans and intersex people in Azerbaijan and Russia, but also in the whole of Europe.”
LION IN WAIT
Jaroslav Silhavy will tell his players to hit the bottle to tee up a potential semi-final clash with England.
After downing the Dutch in the last 16, the Czech Republic hope to pull off another shock tonight against Denmark.
The tie is at a baking Baku Olympic Stadium, where temperatures could hit 35 degrees, and Silhavy reckons it might be a survival of the fittest.
Win and they could face the Three Lions, their Group D rivals, on Wednesday for a FOURTH time in the Euros after two earlier qualifiers.
Boss Silhavy said: “The medical staff are ready for it and did the same before the last round as it was hot there, too.
“We will need to drink a lot and hydrate. I do believe it will be us. We can make them make mistakes and capitalise.”
NOT A KJAER IN THE WORLD
Skipper Simon Kjaer has recovered from the thigh injury he picked up in the last 16 win over Wales, and just as determined to keep the party mood going in Copenhagen and beyond.
Kjaer said: “All the support we’ve had is something we could only dream about but at the same time, could barely imagine. It’s been amazing.
“It’s going to be hard to experience something like this again. We are just living the dream as much as we can while we are in this football bubble.
“But we are not done yet – we will be attacking the same as in our other games and are just as eager to keep it going.
“We are not thinking of whether we will be European champions or not yet, that’s too far ahead – but we have the hunger.”
Credit: Getty PROBABLE DANISH LINE-UP
Captain Simon Kjaer has shaken off a thigh problem, while striker Yussuf Poulsen is also fit after a hip issue.
LIKELY LINE-UPS
The Czech starting XI should have a couple of changes.
Left back Jan Boril is available after a ban, while skipper Vladimir Darida has recovered from a leg injury.
MORE ON SCHMEICHEL
The Leicester keeper said: “There are so many motivational factors…it’s been everything you dreamed of as a kid, everything we have been through as a team.
“We’ve talked a lot about the love the Danish team is getting, and it just grows bigger and bigger.
“We could never imagine how crazy it could go and we don’t want to disappoint anyone now – we want to keep making the country and our families proud.
“And I can tell you we’re not thinking of leaving here any time soon, so we will go on the attack one more time tomorrow.”
Credit: AP
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
