Historical Squad #1- Denmark in Euro 1992

Every major tournament is a platform for the players to showcase their talent to the world. Most players will grab this opportunity to play their A-Game in order to leave some positive impression for the football fans. Therefore, some national team will achieve something which is memorable in a tournament. In this article, we are going to see the historical Danish national team in Euro 1992.

Previous Record

Prior to the 1992 Euro, the Denmark national team had only participated in a major tournament for only four times (three Euro tournaments and one World Cup). Their best achievement was in the 1984 Euro which they finished third in the tournament. However, this team that prepared for this tournament was not in good shape. Both Laudrup brothers opted to quit the national team due to disagreement with the coach and Nielsen, the national team manager at that time dismissed star players such as Jan Molby and Jan Heintze due to disciplinary problem. Initially, they are not even qualified for this tournament. They were eventually included in this tournament because Yugoslavia was excluded from the competition due to international sanctions. So how will this broken Danish side will perform?

Tournament Squad

Peter Schmeichel (Manchester United), Mogens Krogh (Brondby)

John Sivebaek (Monaco), Kent Nielsen (Aarhus), Lars Olsen (Trabzonspor), Kim Christofte (Brondby), Torben Piechnik (B.1903), Claus Christiansen (Lyngby)

Henrik Andersen (1. FC Koln), John Jensen (Brondby), Johnny Molby (Vejle), Henrik Larsen (Lyngby), Kim Vilfort (Brondby), Peter Nielsen (Lyngby), Morten Bruun (Silkeborg)

Flemming Povlsen (Borussia Dortmund), Lars Elstrup (Odense), Brian Laudrup (Bayern Munich), Torben Frank (Lyngby), Bent Christensen Arensoe (Schalke 04)

Result

GS: Denmark 0-0 England

GS: Sweden 1-0 Denmark

GS: France 1-2 Denmark

SF: Netherlands 2-2 Denmark (Denmark advance through penalties 4-5)

Final: Denmark 2-0 Germany

Tournament Review

The Danes started their first game in Malmo against a traditionally strong team, England. Their tournament was considered as started in a good way as they successfully held a goalless draw against England which fielded the top class players like Gary Lineker and David Platt on the pitch and a young Alan Shearer on the bench. However, the second match for the Danish national team is not a good one. They were defeated by the home nation, Sweden. A Josh Brolin goal in the second home had dented the Danish dream and send their qualification chance into jeopardy. Still goalless in the competition, only a win can ensure this Danish national team have a chance to advance to the knockout round.

All hopes and expectations come down to their last group match against France. This French side isn’t weak either as they have the likes of Didier Deschamps, Jean-Pierre Papin and Eric Cantona in the team. But it was Denmark who got the first blood as Henrik Larsen registered Denmark’s first goal in the tournament in just 8 minutes. Papin equalised for Les Blues in the second half to give France a chance to qualify. In this case, miracle stands on the Danish side as the substitute, Lars Elstrup sealed the deal just 8 minutes after he stepped on the pitch. When the full-time whistle blew, Denmark is the team who advance through the knockout round. This is just the beginning of the Danish drama.

The Danes’ next match in the tournament was against the defending champions, the Netherlands. This is a tough match as the Dutch team at that time is the best team at that period with the Ballon d’Or winners, Van Basten and Ruud Gullit in the team. But Danish is still the one who scored the first goal in the match as Henrik Larsen scored in just 5 minutes. This time the Dutch side reacted quickly as Dennis Bergkamp equalised in the 23rd minutes. Henrik Larsen put the Danes on the lead again by scoring his second 10 minutes later. It seems like Denmark was destined to go through at the end, Rijkaard scored four minutes from time and extend the match into extra time. After a goalless extra-time, the destiny of both teams was decided by a penalty shootout. With the Danish side scored all five of the spot-kick and Peter Schmeichel saved Van Basten’s penalty, they are the one who qualified to the final.

Now it’s only the German left in front of the Danes for them to claim the title in Gothenburg. They have the likes of Matthias Sammer, Stefan Effenberg and Jurgen Klinsmann in the team and they are the favourites to win the whole tournament. But the Danes aren’t losing the game without any fights. They are still scoring the first goal of the match as John Faxe Jensen scored in the 18th minutes. Germany tried to recover from the one-goal deficit by increasing its attacking intensity. However, several heroic moments from Peter Schmeichel denied any possibilities from the Germans to equalise. The final nail of the coffin for Germany was a 78th-minute strike from Vilfort. When the whistle blew, the Danes are the one who celebrates the victory. This is the most wonderful night for the Danes.

Verdict

Began this tournament as an underdog, ended this tournament as a winner. This is definitely the most historical moment in the entire Denmark football national team history. With two of their star players (Peter Schmeichel and Brian Laudrup) was selected as the UEFA Team of the Tournament and a top scorer of the tournament (Henrik Larsen), what else can we expect more in this Danish team? This will go down as the best ever Danish football team in their history.

#Denmark #Euro #Euro92 #Schmeichel #Laudrup