BAKU, AZERBAIJAN – JULY 03: Thomas Delaney of Denmark celebrates after victory in the UEFA Euro 2020 Championship Quarter-final match between Czech Republic and Denmark at Baku Olimpiya Stadionu on July 03, 2021 in Baku, Azerbaijan. (Photo by Naomi Baker/Getty Images)
Denmark hold on in the second half and get past Czech Republic
Denmark’s cinderella run continues as the Danes manage to hold on and beat the Czech Republic to progress to the semifinals of Euro 2020.
Goals by Thomas Delaney in the fifth minute and Kasper Dolberg in the 42nd proved enough for a Danish side who were the better team in the first half.
The second half was a bit of a different story as Patrik Schick pulled one back for Czech Republic in the 49th minute.
Denmark, however, were able to hold on to their lead and even had opportunities to put the game away.
“It wasn’t pretty today, but there was fight and a fantastic keeper,” said Denmark manager Kasper Hjulmand. “The batteries were almost empty, but to reach a UEFA EURO semi-final is huge.
“It’s magical. The first thing I showed the boys when we met was a picture of Wembley from when we were there in the autumn. I said that we were going to come back. It felt like we played in a Danish stadium again, due to the support of our fans. We’re deeply thankful.”
Source: UEFA
Whether or not Denmark has been spurred on by what happened to Christian Eriksen in their opening game, only the players can answer that.
The Danish side have played good football at times and while this one was a struggle, all that matters at the end is getting the result. It’s tournament football and the goal is getting to the final by any means necessary.
As for the Czech Republic, perhaps no one expected them to get as far as they did and leave Euro 2020 with their heads held high.
“Nobody believed in us but we stuck together, said Czech goalkeeper Tomáš Vaclík. There is a strong team spirit. We have something special in this group. With the passing of time, I think we will only find positives from this tournament.
We lost and we must go home, but I have to say that I am proud of this team. After our performance – especially in the second half – we can leave with our heads held high feeling we have given our all. ”
Source: UEFA
As a result of their win, the Danish have now reached the semifinals for the fourth time in their history.
The road to the final isn’t going to get any easier as Denmark must now prepare for a tough test in the semifinals as they travel to Wembley to take on England.
