THE winners of Euro 1992 will be hoping for another unlikely surge to the latter stages under boss Kasper Hjulmand.
The Danes reached the semi-finals at Euro 2020, narrowly losing out to England at Wembley in extra-time after Harry Kane tapped home a botched penalty.
The spirit of this team cannot be questioned, overcoming Christian Eriksen’s cardiac arrest three years ago to produce one of this competition’s great tales.
The majority of that squad remain intact, including experienced heads Kasper Schmeichel, Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, skipper Simon Kjaer and a recovered Eriksen.
There are also plenty of notable Premier League faces in Crystal Palace’s Joachim Andersen, Brentford’s Mathias Jensen, Christian Norgaard and Mikkel Damsgaard and Manchester United’s Rasmus Hojlund.
Momentum is with them once more following a solid qualifying campaign that saw them top a tricky group with seven wins from 10.
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Within that was an unbeaten two outings against Slovenia – who finished level on points in second and stand in their way yet again in Group C.
There will be a desire to perform on a major stage again after a disastrous Qatar World Cup showing back in November 2022 – finishing bottom of their group winless with one point.
Manager: Kasper Hjulmand
Played in America for North Florida Ospreys and became Thomas Tuchel’s successor at Mainz in 2014.
Key man: Rasmus Hojlund
The 21-year-old has been one of the few bright sparks in Manchester United’s miserable campaign.
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He can cause problems with his tireless work ethic and clinical finishing.
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Likely line-up
How they attack
Denmark are very structured and patient in the way that they look to build the attack.
What is interesting with the Danish side is that they are always willing to push players into advanced and aggressive positions in order to stretch the pitch on the highest line of the attack.
They often push four players up against the opposition to give them plenty of attacking options.
Expect to see Denmark come into this tournament playing in a back four system although this will be fluid.
While the defensive line and the midfield remain structured, full-backs or wing-backs move into aggressive positions when the Danes are on the attack.
The midfield three are well structured with one deep and two ahead and the wing-backs take the opportunity to press forward.
As Denmark are likely to be patient in the attack, they push into the final third and squeeze the pitch.
They make things very difficult for the opposition when it comes to breaking out on the counter attack.
Denmark, especially against their weaker opponents, will dominate the game.
How they defend
As in their attacking tactics, they are very strong when it comes to their defensive shape and structure behind the ball.
They drop into a solid 5-4-1 formation when the opposition are building an attack.
They tend to sit back and wait patiently for the moment to press the other team
When the opposition are looking to play progressively from the back Denmark then start to commit more players into advanced areas to press and control the game.
They will start with two strikers and in the likes of Hojlund and Yusuf Poulsen they have players in that position who are intense and strong against the ball.
When Denmark do press high in their defensive shape to defend in a high to medium block they react very quickly when the opposition suddenly play longer to avoid the press.
They work hard to plug any gaps that the opposition might have found.
Prediction
Denmark will believe they have an outside chance of finishing top of the group should England suffer a slow start to the tournament.
A second-place finish for the Danes looks most likely, where they would could then face the tough task of playing host nation Germany in the last-16.
Latest odds
Denmark are 40/1 to win the Euros and 4/5 to finish in the top two of Group C, via William Hill.
Glam Wags
The glamorous wives and girlfriends were banned from Qatar during the 2022 World Cup.
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It remains to be seen whether they will head to Germany this summer.
Those potentially missing their loved ones could include Katrine Friis – Andreas Christensen’s girlfriend – and Andersen’s childhood sweetheart Cecilie Porsdal.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
