England vs Denmark Ends in A 1-1 Draw in Euro 2024 Triumph

After a lackluster 1-0 victory over Serbia to start their tournament, England again flattered to deceive in Frankfurt, and a point was the least the Danes deserved. As England capitalised on a defensive blunder by Denmark, Harry Kane had given the Three Lions the lead early on. Before the half, Morten Hjulmand’s long-range shot from outside the box tied the score, and Denmark was left to lament their missed opportunities to win the game.

“There’s a huge amount of work to do, that’s evident from the two performances we have given – clearly it was not what we would’ve hoped for,” Southgate added. “We acknowledge that, understandably, people will be disappointed with the performances. We must greatly improve them.”

England leads Group C by two points above Denmark and Slovenia, whom they play in Cologne on Tuesday. Serbia also controls their own destiny thanks to their late equalizer in a 1-1 draw with Slovenia earlier on Thursday.

With a win in their last sectional match, England would top the group and just need one point to qualify. On Wednesday, Southgate stated that he stays out of the press throughout competitions in order to avoid bad press.

However, he acknowledged that greater criticism will follow another lackluster performance by one of the pre-tournament favorites. On the day of the match, Denmark’s coach Kasper Hjulmand and goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel declared that they would not be motivated by retaliation for their country’s heartbreaking loss to England in the Euro 2020 semifinal three years prior.

The Danish team, though, was a very different animal from the one that was disappointing in the 2022 World Cup and in their opening-round draw against Slovenia in Germany. In only its second game of five at Euro 2024, Denmark had gotten off to a better start as both teams had to deal with a wobbly pitch in Frankfurt that cut up terribly.

However, England took the lead after 18 minutes by taking advantage of a mistake made by Hjulmand’s team. Kyle Walker’s move down the right side caught Victor Kristiansen off guard, and his deflected low cross dropped just right for Kane to score his 13th goal at a major event.

One criticism of England under Southgate has been their inability to build on early 1-0 leads. Even though it required a tremendous goal to tie the score, Denmark was not deterred this time.

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The England midfield gave Hjulmand much too much space to shoot, but he made the most of it from a distance with a fierce shot that went in and inside the post. After Phil Foden once again failed to perform well against Serbia at the international level, his form for England had been the subject of much discussion.

The Manchester City playmaker, who was just inches close from giving England the lead again with a low drive that crashed back off the post, looked a lot more like the player who won Premier League player of the year accolades this season.

Although Southgate has faced criticism for his prudence in the past, he showed bravery by substituting Eberechi Eze, Ollie Watkins, and Jarrod Bowen for Kane, Foden, and Bukayo Saka in his quest for a winner. In defending his choices, Southgate continued, “We felt it was important to get speed and energy in the front line.”

Watkins had a great through pass from Jude Bellingham, but Schmeichel denied him, saving him from making an immediate impact. However, Denmark had a better opportunity to win the game with all three points in the last moments.

Unmarked from a corner, Andreas Christensen spooned over, and Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg curled inches wide. “It’s unfortunate, but I can’t say we are disappointed. We could have achieved a different outcome there,” remarked Danish coach Hjulmand.