World Cup Profile : Denmark national football team
Denmark have been drawn into Group C, which is by no means an easy group
Denmark has participated in 4 World Cups till date, their first being the 1986 World Cup in Mexico and their last being the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. Their best performance in a World Cup has been reaching the quarter-finals in 1998, where they were beaten by a Brazil side led by Rivaldo.
The Scandinavian side’s bane has always been imbalance in the squad. Denmark has produced some of the best talents in world football, but they have never been backed up by lesser players in the world.
The likes of Michael Laudrup, Frank Arnesen, Morten Olsen, Peter Schmeichel and Daniel Agger were some of the best players of their generation but none of them were able to bring success to the national team, mostly because of the other underperforming players.
But that is not going to be the case in the World Cup in Russia. The squad has a balance between average players and stars and experience and youth, which is key for any team to succeed in an international tournament.
Ideally the starting lineup should look like this (4-2-3-1) :
Goalkeeper : Kasper Schmeichel
Right-back : Peter Ankersen
Centre-back(right) : Andreas Christensen
Centre-back(left) : Simon Kjær(captain)
Left-back : Riza Durmisi
Midfielder(left) : William Kvist(vice-captain)
Midfielder(right) : Lasse Schöne
Central attacking midfielder : Christian Eriksen
Right winger : Daniel Wass
Left winger : Pione Sisto
Centre forward : Kasper Dolberg
Kasper Schmeichel is as reliable as a player can be in between the sticks. In defence, Denmark should have the capable pairing of leader Simon Kjær and the towering Andreas Christensen, with Riza Durmisi and Peter Ankersen doing the business down the flanks.
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In the middle of the park, William Kvist can provide protection to the defence while Lasse Schöne can act as transition point between defence and attack. Down the wings, the pacy Celta Vigo duo of Daniel Wass and Pione Sisto can cause havoc in the opposition defence.
But a lot hinges on Christian Eriksen and Kasper Dolberg. Eriksen needs to bring his A game, and channel all his inner passion into the game for Denmark to have success. He needs to do whats he does for Tottenham in the Premier League day in day out, and that is create chances.
Dolberg, on the other hand, has to put on his scoring boots in Russia. He is a youngster with bags of talent and huge potential and the World Cup is a grand stage for realisation of potential. The Ajax man would be key when going up front.
But Denmark also have a strong bench. Yussuf Poulsen is a renowned super-sub while Andreas Cornelius and Thomas Delaney can make an impact while coming off the bench. But it remains to be seen whether Åge Hareide has the tactical suaveness required to beat the likes of France and Peru.