Denmark thrilled – with three points in the round of 16
Stand: 21.06.2021
Denmark coach Kasper Hjulmand and his team cheer for the interim 2-0
Source: dpa / Stuart Franklin
The Danes are finally getting their deserved and exhilarating football festival at the European Championships. The fans are transforming the stadium in Copenhagen into a madhouse. Opponent Russia, on the other hand, suffers the complete crash.
Mith heart and passion, co-hosts Denmark made it to the round of 16 at the European Football Championship and ensured another emotional climax of the tournament. Loudly cheered by 25,000 fans in Copenhagen, the 1992 European champions won 4-1 (1-0) against Russia on Monday evening and improved from fourth to second place on the final day of Group B. The two goals conceded by second competitor Finland in the parallel game against Belgium were celebrated almost as well as their own four goals by Mikkel Damsgaard (38th minute), Yussuf Poulsen (59th), Andreas Christensen (80th) and Joakim Maehle (82nd) .
The only catch for the Danes is that from now on they can no longer be supported so passionately in the Parken Stadium. Because for their knockout round game against Wales on Saturday (6 p.m.) they now have to move to Amsterdam. For the weak Russians, who were eliminated as fourth in the group, Artjom Dsjuba (70th) scored a penalty for a temporary connection.
As with the bitter 1: 2 defeat against Belgium last Thursday, the atmosphere in the Parken Stadium in the Danish capital even before kick-off started. UEFA again put a meter-long jersey on the pitch with the name and number 10 of the Danish playmaker Christian Eriksen, who suffered cardiac arrest in the first European Championship game against Finland. The fans celebrated the gesture with frenetic applause.
Eriksen replacement scores dream goal
Eriksen left the hospital last Friday and visited the team afterwards. “It feels like the tournament is just getting started for us,” said Denmark coach Kasper Hjulmand before the game.
His protégés immediately seized the initiative and acted with great physical effort in a clearly superior manner. 73 percent possession after 20 minutes also proved this numerically. But the Russians had the first chance. Alexander Golowin (18th) refueled in the middle, but failed with his imprecise low shot against Denmark’s goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel.
In the last third, the hosts initially lacked the brilliant ideas to undermine the well-organized Russian defense. With loud “Danmark, Danmark” shouts, the spectators drove their team forward undaunted and were then allowed to cheer. Damsgaard, who slipped into the starting line-up after the Eriksen drama for the 29-year-old, took heart from more than 20 meters and duped Russia’s goalkeeper Matwej Safonow.
Penalty missed, blackout – nothing works with Russia
A blackout by Roman Zobnin favored the second Danish goal after the move. A back pass from the midfielder landed at Poulsen, who only had to push the ball into the empty goal. A little later, loud cheers broke out again in the stands when the news of the supposed leadership of Belgium against Finland came. But the hit in the parallel game in St. Petersburg was withdrawn because of offside.
And it got worse: after a pluck from Jannik Vestergaard, the French referee Clément Turpin gave the Russians a penalty, which Djuba safely converted. The Danes did not let these setbacks stop them. As if unleashed, the team played and restored the old distance through Christensen. Shortly before, the Belgians had met regularly and thus provided the hoped-for help. The rest was just cheers.
Russia’s coach Stanislav Tschertschessow analyzed: “It is not always possible to predict what will happen. That’s football. ”Denmark’s goalscorer Andreas Christensen celebrated:“ We just have a great team. The support today was incredible, I can’t put it into words. “
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