Brentford trio Mikkel Damsgaard, Mathias Jensen, and Christian Norgaard will all hope to start as Denmark look to save their World Cup campaign in a do-or-die clash Australia tomorrow.
The Danes have had a less than impressive start to the tournament in Qatar, with just a single point from their opening two games and know they likely must beat the Socceroos to progress from Group D.
Damsgaard was the sole starter of the trio in Denmark’s 2-1 defeat to France, with midfielders Jensen and Norgaard coming on as a second-half substitutes.
Hotly tipped as many people’s pre-tournament dark horses, the Euro 2020 semi-finalists have yet to catch fire in Qatar, but boss Kasper Hjulmand is refusing to treat their must-win game as different to any other.
“We are 100% focused on solving a task,” said Hjulmand. “We do as we usually do. We analyse the opponent and train well. It’s about solving a football-related task.
“We will play with our identity, our philosophy, and we will see how it works.
“It's only the last ten or fifteen minutes where we may change depending on the result.
“We don't discuss this pressure, we train, we prepare as usual, with the desire that everyone plays their role.”
The Bees trio will hope to line up alongside former teammate Christian Eriksen, who Hjulmand admitted he wish he could clone.
And the former Nordsjaelland boss, who has been credited with the development of a number of World Cup stars such as Ghana’s Mohammed Kudus, knows he will need all of Eriksen’s quality against an Australia side with nothing to lose.
“Australia also know that it is dangerous to wait, they will not know if a draw will be enough,” added Hjulmand.
“I am sure of it: they will try to put pressure on us, to attack. As in all matches, each team will have its highlights.
“They have strengths in their team, but it’s mostly as a team. They’re a team that works well together and that’s what I see.
“They [Australia] are good collectively. They work hard together and are well organised. They attack together and they defend together.”
It all comes down to today 💪
— Brentford FC (@BrentfordFC) November 29, 2022
A place in the #FIFAWorldCup Last 16 is the prize for Saman Ghoddos this evening
🇮🇷 🆚 🇺🇸
7pm kick-off#BrentfordFC pic.twitter.com/vwgEqM0bgs
The Bees’ Danish trio are not the only Brentford players facing a crucial match in the final round of group stage fixtures, with Bryan Mbeumo knowing his Cameroon side must defy the odds to beat Brazil in order to qualify for the knockout stages for the first time since wowed the world at Italia 90.
Mbeumo, who only made his debut for the Indomitable Lions in September, played 81 minutes as Cameroon kept their World Cup hopes alive with a dramatic 3-3 draw with Serbia.
And midfielder Saman Ghoddos will be hoping for his first start of the World Cup as Iran face USA in Group B for a place in the knockout stages.
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