Denmark v Germany -Sunday 17th June- 7.45pm kick-off
FIFA Rankings:
Denmark 9, Germany 3
Harald Bluetooth, son of Gorm The Old, ruled Denmark in the 10th century. His name was adopted by Ericcson due to his belief in God and his ability to make diverse factions communicate.
In tonight’s Group B match, Denmark might very well need some divine help and diverse skills to beat Germany. A point is all that Germany needs to ensure that they are winners of this tough group. However, the fact remains that if Denmark beat Germany and Portugal beat Holland, the unthinkable will happen and Germany will be eliminated unless Germany can end up with a better goal difference than Portugal.
Not only were Germany the only team to qualify with a 100% record, but they are already the only side at the finals to have a 100% record. Germany has dominated both of its two matches to date, but has had to weather late rallies from both Portugal and Holland.
Denmark are not ranked 9th for nothing and will make Germany work for their win. They ‘done a job’ on Holland in their first game, but against Portugal they came back well from 2-0 down only to lose the game in the last minutes.
Tactics
In 1978, Mrs Rommedahl gave birth to identical twin boys. Strangely, Mr & Mrs Rommedahl named them both Dennis – one grew up to play for PSV Eindhoven, Ajax and Denmark, the other played for Charlton Athletic. Whether Rommedahl or former Charlton keeper, Stephan Andersen, can win the game for Denmark remains to be seen.
The Danish team has proved to be solid, hard working with an ability to break well. They found the head of Nicklas Bendtner on two occasions to make a strong comeback against Portugal. However, both Portugal and Holland found holes in their defence – Portugal took their chances; Holland didn’t. Agger was outstanding in the win over Holland, but Germany’s probing style will mean that chances will come their way.
It’s often said that the teams that win these tournaments are the ones that start by winning without playing at their best and then click into top gear for the final stages. This applies so far to Germany, it could be argued, as they have dominated their two opening games without being dazzling yet having something in reserve. In midfield, Schweinsteiger, Ozil and Khedira have looked good and they look likely to be too good for the Danes.
Ones to watch: Bastian Schweinsteiger (Germany) Nicklas Bendtner (Denmark)
Odds: The bookies don’t give Denmark much hope of winning this one, but don’t rule out a draw, which would be enough for Germany to ensure that they win the group. Germany (8/11 – Bet365), Denmark (5/1 BetFred), the draw (13/5 – SkyBet)
Prediction:
It would be fun to hear the Danes celebrating Rommedahl’s 90th minute winner by singing “Dennis i det sidste minut” after the game, but it’s hard to see beyond another German victory. Denmark will give a good account of themselves, but their defensive frailties will mean that Germany run out 2-0 winners.
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Comments
Seneste actually translates as "latest" rather than "last" but I think a few of us would be very happy to be singing "Dennis i det sidste minut"
Danepak will now probably correct me and claim that no true Dane would bother with the word "det" (there is, after all only one last minute).
My experience of the modern Dane is that they can't be arsed translating and would probably stick to the original which fits the tune better. Besides, the Germans wouldn't understand them if they sang in Danish
Agger to recieve a card ( 12-5 Betfair )
Halftime Draw / Fulltime Germany ( 5-1 Betfair)
table so far:
germans 6
denmark 3
portugal 3
holland 0
so that would leave them all on 6 points if the germans lost and portugal won??
Portugal Pts 6 GF 4 GA 3
Denmark PTs 6 GF 4 GA 3
Germany Pts 6 GF 3 GA 2
Holland Pts 0 GF 1 GA 4
So, the results between the three would be taken. They would have all have taken 3 points in the games between each other, so it would go down to goal difference. As it would be the same, it would be on goals scored and as Germany have scored only 3 goals so they would be out. Simple!
Hollands manager has dropped his son in law on Fathers Day !
Denmark equalised
For all those with knowledge of the danish, here's a norwegian comedy show's point of view on the danes and their language.
Apologies if you've seen it before.
:-D