Amputated of its best element Christian Eriksen, survivor of the first round and now very efficient, Denmark seduces Europe of football in this Euro 2020. Its crazy history, its unexpected heroes make the Danish selection the new formation that the European public has want to see shine.
The Danish fans will have gone through all the emotions in this Euro 2020. After having come close to the worst with the cardiac arrest of Christian Eriksen in the middle of a match, the Danish selection finds itself almost to general surprise in the quarter-finals after his demonstration against the Welsh (4-0) on Saturday.
With this successful match, the Vikings have every chance of making it to the semi-finals of the competition on Saturday against the Czech Republic.
In total, many elements make Denmark one of the favorite selections of Europeans at Euro 2020.
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Because he suffered from the discomfort of his best player
Everything had started badly for the Vikings.
Their best element, Inter Milan star Christian Eriksen, collapsed due to discomfort in Denmark's first game against Finland (0-1 loss).
A tragic event that marked the entire football planet, and well beyond.
The miraculous survival of his number 10 increased the sympathy granted to the Danish selection, then in shock at the start of the competition.
The resumption of play was subsequently a nightmare for the Vikings, who lost their first game of the tournament.
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Because there are heroes
During this accident, a man was the hero of a whole people: the captain of the selection Simon Kjaer.
The former Lille defender rushed to move his teammate to the side safety position and prevent any suffocation.
An example for its partners, and for all.
Goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel, who reassured Eriksen's companion alongside Kjaer, paid tribute to "a fantastic person and captain".
"I am not surprised that Simon Kjaer took the lead. He has a great ethic and I am proud to consider him as my friend," he stressed two days after the meeting.
Because he comes from afar
At the start of Matchday 3 of the group stage, Denmark were close to the exit with no points on the clock.
His narrow defeat against Belgium (1-2), one of the big favorites of the tournament, finally revived him on the second day in a pumped-up Parken Stadium in Copenhagen.
His recital four days later against Russia, still at home (4-1) and punctuated by a splendid goal from his defender Andreas Christensen, allowed him to extricate himself from group B, in second position, on the last day. .
A new miracle for the Vikings which makes the beautiful story of this Euro 2020.
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Because he seduces in the game
A story that is not yet over.
In the round of 16, Denmark regaled against Wales, inflicting a 4-0 to the semi-finalists of Euro 2016. Nice striker Kasper Dolberg, started in the absence for injury of the usual forward. center Yussuf Poulsen, signed a double in this meeting and was unanimous.
His first goal concluded a model of collective action, started in the camp of the Danes.
The sign of an efficient and forward-looking team, with eight achievements in the last two meetings.
In short, a team that football fans want to see shine again.
Because he is an outsider capable of winning the title
In the quarter-finals on Saturday against the Czech Republic, the selection led by Kasper Hjulmand will be able to rely on his attackers in full confidence. "We have a lot of great players, it would be a lie to say that we expected to be there, but it's a big satisfaction to be in the quarterfinals," said Kasper Dolberg, one of his decisive players. A Danish selection like Iceland in 2016, another Nordic country unexpected at this stage of the competition which had benefited from the sympathy of European supporters. But Denmark can aim higher against a Czech team that is also an outsider in the tournament. And why not repeat his feat of Euro 1992, where the red and white selection had won the title, again to everyone's surprise.