Manager Kasper Hjulmand announced an elusive 26 men squad for Denmark. The list contains most players in their prime and fair to say one of the experienced sides heading into the Euros this summer.
Denmark UEFA Euro 2020 Squad :
Goalkeepers: Kasper Schmeichel (Leicester), Jonas Lössl (Midtjylland), Frederik Rønnow (Schalke)
Defenders: Jens Stryger Larsen (Udinese), Simon Kjær (AC Milan), Andreas Christensen (Chelsea), Joachim Andersen (Fulham), Daniel Wass (Valencia), Mathias Jørgensen (Copenhagen), Joakim Mæhle (Atalanta), Jannik Vestergaard (Southampton), Nicolai Boilesen (Copenhagen)
Midfielders: Mathias Jensen (Brentford), Christian Nørgaard (Brentford), Pierre-Emile Højbjerg (Tottenham), Thomas Delaney (Dortmund), Anders Christiansen (Malmö), Christian Eriksen (Inter Milan), Mikkel Damsgaard (Sampdoria), Robert Skov (Hoffenheim)
Forwards: Martin Braithwaite (Barcelona), Andreas Cornelius (Parma), Andreas Skov Olsen (Bologna), Yussuf Poulsen (Leipzig), Kasper Dolberg (Nice), Jonas Wind (Copenhagen)
Key Player: Christian Eriksen
There is no better player in Denmark in their squad than the team captain Christian Eriksen. The 29-year-old playmaker has figured out his place at Inter and since then he hasn't looked back. Helping the Italian team lift the Scudetto, the Dane will be hot in blood to make something happen on the International stage. Eriksen has added defensive attributes to his play so he is no longer criticize for that characteristic. It also helps the former Tottenham midfielder to add another dimension to his play. Christian has been consistent with the national side too. Denmark often relies heavily upon him so it will be his turn to put up a decisive display at the Euros and help the team progress on its own. Eriksen's turnover at Inter will certainly push him to do more.
Strength (Solidity)
Denmark is praised for its solidity on the pitch. As seen by their recent showing in the nations league and the Euro qualifiers itself, they are hard to break down. Their compactness drives them to extract important results on the road. Much of the credit goes to the midfield pivot of Dortmund's Thomas Delaney and Spurs' Pierre-Emile Hojberg. Both are great on the ball and offer physicality. Recently promoted Brentford's pair of Mathias Jensen and Christian Nørgaard are sound midfielders in breaking the play. Sampdoria's Mikkel Damsgaard has got the flair and required defensive control. Forwards Poulsen and Cornelius provide physicality in the box with Kasper Dolberg and Jonas Wind can score a lot of given space. In all, they are a solid unit. Then there is the factor of experience which they plenty have in Kasper Schmeichel, Simon Kjær and of course Christian Eriksen.
Weakness (Getting over the line)
As much as their solidity is appreciated, Denmark finds itself guilty of not pulling out the right mindset of getting over the line in the time of asking. Although their solidity helps in gaining results, in major stages they flung their chances. It's more down to the mentality than the lack of quality that costs them in such situations. Denmark rarely looks like a team coasting themselves to victory. Their too much reliance on Christian Eriksen proves a barrier. It's a common thought that opposition nullifying him means restricting Denmark altogether.
However, Eriksen and Denmark will try their best to prove those critics wrong They hope this time Eriksen and the experience in the squad add some spring in their step to make steady progress for the Euros in the summer.
To check regular updates stay tuned to Euro 2020
