Latest news with #DenmarkNationalTeam
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Danish media believe Rasmus Hojlund's international spot at risk
Manchester United forward Rasmus Hojlund's place in Denmark's national team could soon be in danger according to Danish media. The forward endured a terrible season where he only scored four domestic goals . Advertisement He did fare better in Europe, grabbing six goals in United's run to the final of the Europa League. As a result, United are said to be keen to add further firepower to their squad this season and have been heavily linked to a move for Sporting CP striker, Viktor Gyokeres. Hojlund's poor form has transferred over to international football as he put in a terrible performance against Northern Ireland on Saturday despite his side winning 2-1. Consequently, the 22 year old forward was dropped to the bench for Denmark's friendly clash with Lithuania and the Danish media were drooling over his replacement, Mika Biereth. Advertisement It only took the Monaco striker 12 minutes to fire in his side's opener and his night's work was given an eight out of 10 by Danish outlet Bold. Analysing Hojlund's replacement they claimed, 'the Monaco striker already showed with his diving header against Northern Ireland how dangerous he is in the box. On Tuesday night, Mika Biereth only had to spend 12 minutes on the pitch in Odense before he put Denmark 1-0 up.' 'He then provided an assist, drew a red card and was constantly poisonous near the goal. Rasmus Højlund must be shaking in his pants right now. He has been overtaken.' Hojlund was subbed on after 72 minutes but failed to get a rating from the outlet for not making enough impression on the game. Advertisement Sofascore did give him a rating of 6.9, as he completed four passes and had one shot on goal and one effort off target, failing to score once again for his national side. Inter Milan have been linked with making a move for the out-of-sorts forward but after the Denmark game on Saturday, he claimed that his future was at Old Trafford and he was committed to the project at the club. Featured image Matt McNulty via Getty Images Follow us on Bluesky: @
BBC News
04-06-2025
- General
- BBC News
Danish heartbreak offered glimpse into NI future
International Friendly: Denmark v Northern IrelandVenue: Parken Stadium, Copenhagen Date: Saturday, 7 June Kick-off: 18:00 BSTCoverage: Watch live on BBC iPlayer and BBC Two NI, listen on BBC Sounds and follow live text commentary & in-play clips on the BBC Sport website Northern Ireland's last visit to Copenhagen will always be best remembered for the almost five-minute VAR check that preceded the disallowing of Callum Marshall's injury-time debutant striker thought his instinctive flick only nine minutes into his international career had secured a creditable draw only for technology to intervene and eventually judge that Jonny Evans was marginally offside in the O'Neill described the decision as "a joke" but, as he brings his side back to the Parken Stadium just shy of two years on for a friendly on Saturday evening, the manager can look back on the heart-breaking night as a key staging post of his second spell in charge. Coming in between dispiriting home defeats by Finland and Kazakhstan, the game may not have appeared to be any great turning point yet, in the time since, those who were then just dipping their toes into international waters have become the core of his side. O'Neill was without 10 regulars when last in Copenhagen, travelling without the likes of Steven Davis, Stuart Dallas, Corry Evans, Josh Magennis and Conor Washington, while Craig Cathcart pulled out on the morning of the their absence, O'Neill started three teenagers in an international XI for the first time in his career, with Liverpool's Conor Bradley joined by Isaac Price and Shea Charles, while another two, Marshall and Dale Taylor, came off the it was the first time since May 2011 that any Northern Ireland side had featured as many as three players yet to celebrate their 20th birthdays. Then it was Josh Carson, Johnny Gorman and Lee Hodson who all started together against Wales in the short-lived Nations Cup under manager Nigel Worthington. While the latter won 24 caps and was a member of the squad that went to Euro 2016, that neither Carson nor Gorman hit double figures illustrates the vagaries of development when it comes to throwing young players in at the deep that in mind, O'Neill can only be delighted with how his own teenage trio have progressed. Now all 21-years-old, Bradley is the team's talisman and was a part of the Liverpool squad that won the Premier League this season. Shea Charles was in his final weeks on the books at Manchester City at the time of the Denmark fixture and would soon join Southampton. On loan at Sheffield Wednesday in the Championship this season, he impressed at Hillsborough and, like Bradley, has already captained the international side. For a team who have struggled for a regular goalscorer since the days of David Healy and Kyle Lafferty, the final member of the triumvirate, Price, developing a knack for finding the back of the net has been left Everton for Standard Liege shortly after his first international start, the midfielder swapped Belgium for West Brom in January and already has eight goals in 20 caps. In Northern Ireland's history only Norman Whiteside - who scored his eighth international goal three weeks and six days after his 21st birthday - ever scored as many at such a young age. Throw in the fact that the June 2023 game also represented a first start for Trai Hume, another of O'Neill's captains who was integral to Sunderland's promotion to the Premiership this season, and the game can now be said to have represented a real glimpse into the side's future. Final preparations for World Cup qualification Back then, Northern Ireland were in the middle of a run of just three wins in 16 fixtures and O'Neill said after the game that he was "not thinking about [tournament] qualification" but instead simply "about putting points on the board".Since, the goalposts have moved with three defeats in 13 games, a run that began with a 2-0 win in the reverse fixture with Denmark, raising hopes that O'Neill could lead a second squad to a major this window, where Northern Ireland will also host Iceland in Belfast on 10 June, representing the final games before qualification for the 2026 World Cup begins in September, the return to Copenhagen offers an interesting yardstick to measure Bradley and Crystal Palace's Justin Devenny the only players in O'Neill's panel to have featured in the Premier League this season, their hosts on Saturday, ranked 21st in the Fifa world rankings, will contain a plethora of players drawn from Europe's top Northern Ireland's last outing, an injury-hit panel struggled in a 5-1 defeat to Sweden when the top-flight quality of Newcastle United's Alexander Isak proved especially telling. With Germany in their four-team group to make it to Canada, Mexico and the USA next summer, there is clearly a need for more regular exposure to higher level of opposition. Two years ago a callow side almost pulled off a shock draw. Saturday offers the opportunity to show how far along the path that same group have come since then.
Daily Mail
20-05-2025
- Sport
- Daily Mail
Danish critics dismissed him as 'out of shape' ... but Celtic goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel insists he's NOT for quitting
Kasper Schmeichel had grievous insult added to the shoulder injury he suffered while playing for Denmark against Portugal in March. Making his 113th international appearance in the second leg of a Nations League play-off in Lisbon, the veteran keeper only stayed on the field after receiving treatment because his side had used their full quota of substitutes. However, the 38-year-old's commitment to the cause in such trying circumstances wasn't universally appreciated. In the aftermath of a 5-2 loss in extra-time, his performance was savagely criticised in some quarters. One pundit, in particular, described the Celtic keeper as 'stubborn' and 'out of shape'. His assertion that Schmeichel was like 'a child with polio' caused widespread outrage throughout the country, with the Danish PFA even stepping in. So much for an appreciation of the service he'd given the national cause across 12 years. Amid the revulsion, many of those in Schmeichel's corner claimed he would be well within his rights to call time on his Denmark career. If that was, indeed, the aim of those who made such venomous barbs, it seems likely they are going to be sorely disappointed. 'I love playing for Denmark,' said Schmeichel as he addressed the matter for the first time. 'When I was growing up, that was the dream. When I was a kid and I was visualising in the garden, I was visualising the stadium and wearing the Denmark shirt. 'So, to play for your country, to have played as many games as I have, to have captained my country, that, for me, is the ultimate thing that you can do as a footballer. 'To still have the opportunity, still have the ability, the drive, the love to do it, I wouldn't give that up. Definitely not.' He has broad enough shoulders and a wealth of experience to deal with what was a trying period in his career. Unable to avoid a debate which subsequently dominated news bulletins and back pages back home, his coping strategy was to stand back and let the fire rage without stoking it. 'I was born in the 80s and I grew up in the 90s and I genuinely believe it is the best era to have been a child, because we had technology, but we didn't have internet,' said Schmeichel. 'We didn't have phones and we weren't attached to all this stuff. And I learned very early in my career just not to read about myself. 'In all honesty, I haven't read a single word about it. Obviously, I've been made aware from different people, but I haven't read it. 'It is what it is. I play football, and football is the most popular sport in the world. And everyone's going to have opinions. And do you know what? That's great. It's great because football is a game of opinions. There's no right, there's no wrong. 'People are going to have opinions that are positive about you. They're going to have negative opinions about you. 'I take advice and I take praise and criticism from the people that are closest to me.' This is unquestionably a strength. If high-profile sportspeople choose to go down rabbit holes online in their spare time, then the truth is they might never resurface. Schmeichel doesn't preach to emerging talents about the perils of listening to voices in the shadows. But, if they want his advice, it's free and considered. 'If people ask me, I always say the same thing - just don't read it,' he explained. 'The only people's opinions you should care about are that of your coaches, your team-mates, your family, your friends, the people around you that know you, know your character, know the standards that you have. 'If you're falling below those standards - and the people around you that you respect and listen to are telling you that - then those are the opinions you should really care about.' Paradoxically, the fact that he was hurting so much physically in the days following the Portugal match probably helped him block out the noise. There was a real fear, he now admits, that injury would cost him any chance of playing against this season. Ensuring he would return on time for the Scottish Cup final became his sole focus. 'Before you get the final diagnosis of what happened, then you're always worried that could have been the season,' he said. 'For me, it was always a matter of maintaining a positive mindset and, once it was confirmed that it was a fracture, then there's time for it to heal. 'Now I've just got to make sure I'm doing all the other stuff, getting all the strength and flexibility back in it. The medical staff were great. They worked me very hard and it feels great now.' The injury has been the only dark cloud in an otherwise outstanding season. Schmeichel first sensed it might be as soon as he checked in at Celtic. Walking out for a pre-season friendly against Chelsea in Indiana last summer, the keeper was given conformation of the scale of the club he'd just joined. 'I followed Celtic a lot because of Joe (Hart.) I played up here (for Falkirk), obviously, and played against Celtic and knew the size of the club. 'And then joining the club, going to America and seeing the support and seeing the attention around the club, you really feel the size of it. 'When you're walking out of Notre Dame and half the stadium is Celtic colours and you're playing against a Premier League side, then you think: 'Wow, okay, this really is massive'. 'For me, I was looking for a club that has a winning culture. When you're coming into a culture like this, you're expected to win and you're expected to perform. And I love that pressure. I love that mentality that anything other than a win is not acceptable.' This was one attraction of joining Celtic. Reuniting with his former boss at Leicester, Brendan Rodgers, was another. 'He came into Leicester and he wanted to win and he did win,' said Schmeichel who picked up the FA Cup under the Northern Irishman four years ago. 'He's very much about firstly creating a team that plays attractive football, very effective football, but also creating a winning culture. 'That was one of the things when he came to Leicester that he instilled. That level of professionalism where so much is expected of you and demanded of you every single day. And that's exactly the same here. 'He leaves you in absolutely no doubt of what's expected of you day in and day out. As a player, personally, that's something I love playing under.' Schmeichel will do so for at least another season, with his current contract expiring just five months before his 40th birthday. There may be a chill in their air when he next pulls on a Denmark shirt. At Celtic Park, there is only warmth. 'People are not going to love you everywhere you go,' acknowledged Schmeichel. 'But to have that support at Celtic from day one was incredible. The reception I got straight away was amazing and, walking around the city, people are so positive. It's been a joy, it really has.'
