FRANCE 98 – General Media News Template

Surprisingly, given the Denmark’s Euro ‘92 success, this is only their second visit to the World Cup finals. With players of the calibre of Peter Schmeichel in goal and Brian Laudrup in attack, Denmark have the quality and self-belief to trouble the host nation France – whom they beat 1-0 in a friendly two years ago-Saudi Arabia and South Africa in the opening exchanges. The last time Denmark appeared in the finals was with their vintage mid-Eighties line-up in Mexico, but over confidence crept in and they went crashing out 5-1 to Spain.

According to Allan Nielson, the Tottenham Hotspur midfielder: “Of course we will not underestimate the opposition. I have seen South Africa on TV and they scored some impressive goals in their qualifying matches. Saudi Arabia proved in 1994 that they are a quality team as well. “But there is a strong belief in our squad that we can put up a good showing. The longer we are together as a unit in France the better we will become. We should be the second best in our group in terms of recent results and FIFA rankings. ” 

Schmeichel’s presence is paramount to the longevity of Denmark’s stay in France. He conceded only six goals in his side’s eight qualifying games, and made some exceptional saves-including two against Greece. The other world class players are the Laudrup brothers, Michael in midfield and Brian in attack.

If on song, Brian can cause havoc to any defence, with his ability to turn on a pin and weave past defenders at will. Coach Bo Johansson-who took over after Euro ‘96 — has found it difficult to find a suitable pairing for the younger of the Laudrups, trying no fewer than six players, with no real success. So lack of goals is a real fear-their 14 was the lowest tally of any of the European qualifying teams-another is the prospect of facing Spain again in the second round.