Pick your player ratings...
Some other choice cuts from The Guardian’s peerless World Cup coverage.
Like this:
And this:
Mile Jedinak chasing down Cristiano Ronaldo, in penalty kicks.
Ok, we’re moving into the wind-down phase of this beast now, so I’ll thank you for keeping me company today, and for all your correspondence. It’s been a pleasure.
Some song suggestions to replace Land Down Under on the Russian PA systems:
Max, “Triffids - Wide Open Road”. Tim Chadds, “As a suggestion for a rousing singalong for the Aussie Team may I suggest ‘Release the Bats’ by the Birthday Party, or for the man up front either I’m Stranded by the Saints or The Go Betweens ‘I need two heads’.”
Dave Goodliffe also keeping things welcomingly outside the lines.
“Tim Cahill’s TC4 emblazoned shinpads recall one of my fave bands!LA’s TC4!”
Also
@JPHowcroft I assume that's not the David Penney who used to play up the right for Oxford United?
— The Justin Horton Show (@ejhchess) June 21, 2018
Who knows? I hope so!
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David Penney emails in a lovely “and now for something completely different” change of direction. “I’ll tell you what I haven’t seen in ages, an indirect free kick in the box. They’re usually great sources of comedy, two people trying to perfectly time a thunderbolt shot through 11 players running at them like a baton charge.”
Thanks David, any excuse to share this all-time classic:
Returning to the penalty, which seems to be the cause of plenty of debate (who’d have thunk it?).
“Poulsen’s arms are very high when he jumps, and FIFA (correctly in my view) regards that as an “unnatural” position,” emails Richard McGahey. “Plus he moved the arm somewhat, helping to direct the ball. And it is not a matter of interpreting his ‘intentions’ (a myth much beloved by fans), especially at the top level players can dissemble very skilfully, you judge the action not the internal psychological state of the player. At my much lower level of reffing, I am constantly telling players to keep their arms and elbows down. Professionals at the World Cup level surely know how it works.”
An opinion Harold vun Kursk disputes. “I am rather shocked that the so-called “penalty” given to Australia was not more heavily criticised just now. I looked at the replay many times and I still cannot fathom what was the nature of the offence. Both players were playing th eball and I did not see anything beyond the normal sorts of collisions that occur in the box. Compare this to the mauling of Harry Kane where he was tackled once (without any doubt) inside the box and brought down another time albeit with perhaps only 75% foul certainty.”
Lee Marston is in a similar camp.”Very harsh. Most galling of all for Denmark, is that the header wasn’t even goalbound.”
Scott Bassett with a point worth making. “I’d like to point out how dive-free this game has been and how much it’s added to a fast paced and really enjoyable game. This is no swimming pool. These are not the greatest teams, but they’re playing with real commitment and heart. Really good to see.” Hear hear.
France vs. Peru is happening over here:
Australia could do with the South Americans doing them a favour.
@JPHowcroft Where's Tim Cahill? Did he not make it to the stadium/lose a leg? That can be the only reason he hasn't been brought on to save the day.
— Yama_vole (@Yama_vole) June 21, 2018
The injury to Nabbout that led to the introduction of Juric probably did for Cahill’s chances. Although replacing Rogic with Irvine later did seem a sideways step.
Disappointment again for Australia who have just one point from 180 minutes of World Cup football in which they’ve been the match for their more illustrious European opponents.
After Denmark controlled the opening phase Australia began to snap into tackles in midfield, Mooy in particular, while the fullbacks were given license to roam, and Rogic and Leckie took the game by the scruff of the neck further forward. For all their endeavour though there were few moments of real head-in-hands distress at opportunities missed.
For Denmark their inability to deal with Australia’s intensity in midfield will be a concern. There were phases in transition where Denmark were overran in midfield and reliant on Australia’s inability to convert in the final third. Going forward, Eriksen and Sisto shone but after a bright opening spell everything was played in front of Australia’s back four with Jorgensen looking an uncomfortable fit for the strategy.
Bert van Marwijk: “After two games we should have four points. We deserved it. We didn’t lose but we had chances to win. The first part of the game we were not convinced we could play against them, then they saw the solution and from then on we controlled the game and Denmark were afraid of us. We were not lucky. I cannot blame them. They gave everything, they played very well.”
Massive improvement in the 2nd half for Australia..after Sisto’s miss around 50-55mins Australia were the better team..Arzani,should have been in earlier,and questions must be asked of the manager as to why @Tim_Cahill was not used with 10-15mins to go.xmb
— Mark Bosnich (@TheRealBozza) June 21, 2018
Here’s an early take:
Denmark 1-1 Australia
Honours even then after a rollicking 90-minutes. Both teams gave their all in an end-to-end contest played in a cup-tie atmosphere. Denmark will be the happier of the two sides but Australia live to fight another day - just.
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90+3min: We’re almost up here in Samara, despite Australia’s desperate attempts to get the ball into Danish territory.
Updated
90+2 min: Corner to Denmark. Eriksen delivers, Braithwaite loops a volley from the edge of the box, but Ryan’s there to claim.
90 min: The refereeing at this World Cup has been refreshingly hands-off but that also means a few challenges that look like fouls are let go. One such halts Arzani mid flight but to the disbelief of the teenager it goes unpunished.
Three minutes of stoppage time.
89 min: Australia clear their lines at pace and fashion a chance for Arzani to cut in from the left and shoot on his right, a drive that Schmeichel parries away. Australia continue to attack though but Leckie can’t get enough on his left-footed snapshot.
88 min: Denmark enjoying their best spell of the half, Sisto and Eriksen working beautifully, but their work is undone by a shocking cross from Delaney.
86 min: The last couple of minutes have slowed down a fraction. Denmark have enjoyed a bit more possession, Australia’s clearances have become a tad ragged.
83 min: Australia look the most likely as the game enters the final ten minutes or so. They’re continuing to break up Danish attacks in midfield and getting the ball forward quickly. Some of their disruptive tactics in midfield didn’t go down too well with Sisto. He receives a yellow card for dissent after disputing the non-award of a foul.
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80 min: Super play from Australia, and Arzani. A mazy run turns into a dangerous attack in a one-two with Risdon, the youngest player at Russia then rescues a lost cause with some lovely footwork but the final cross evades any green-shirted attackers.
Tom Rogic’s night is over. He’s replaced by Jackson Irvine after an excellent performance.
78 min: Both sides have slugged this one out toe-to-toe and there’s still no let-up in the pace or energy. Rogic almost creates an opportunity, then Arzani gets his first opportunity to get his feet moving and his cross is a beauty for Leckie but he can’t generate enough power in his header to trouble Schmeichel.
76 min: Despite that minor delay the action is unrelenting and as soon as play restarts Leckie fashions a shooting chance on his left foot from the right side of the box. From Schmeichel’s save Denmark force Sainsbury into an uncomfortable moment but he does enough.
74 min: That was an innocuous incident, Nabbout stabilising an almost-fall with his arm and he immediately doubled over in agony. Poor guy is helped to the touchline and replaced by Tomi Juric.
Updated
73 min: Hmmm, Nabbout looks to have dislocated his right shoulder.
72 min: Rogic tries something similar a few moments later but Schmeichel is down to save. Denmark go down the other end and Sisto is no far away with a curler from the edge of the D.
This has been like a cup tie. All action, lung-busting stuff. Great fun.
71 min: Arzani’s first action is a simple pass to Mooy who absolutely leathers a rising drive from just outside the box that whistles inches over the bar. That was a violent ecky thump of the football.
70 min: What can Arzani do in his 20 minute cameo? It surely can’t be worse than Kruse’s abject 70-minute horror show.
68 min: Another opportunity in transition goes begging for Australia. Rogic waited an age for Mooy to run into space down the left but by the time he does Dalsgaard is there to clear. The second phase causes havoc in the Denmark box though with Nabbout challenging Schmeichel and the ball hacked over the bar for a corner.
More subs, and it is Arzani for Kruse for Australia (not before time) and Jorgensen is replaced by Cornelius for Denmark.
Updated
66 min: Denmark have played a number of neat combinations in front of Australia’s defence this half but haven’t yet got in behind. Sisto is at the heart of most of what the Danes have done well, with Eriksen and Delaney nearby. You wonder if Jorgensen is the striker they need in this set-up though.
64 min: Kruse again loses possession cheaply, surely it’s time for Daniel Arzani to offer something different off the bench?
62 min: Very very tasty piece of skill from Rogic almost sets up Australia on the counter after a few minutes of Danish possession. Unfortunately for the Socceroos Leckie’s first touch was poor and the opportunity fizzles out.
60 min: Denmark are putting plenty into this and you can sense they’re not far from establishing control but Australia continue to snap into challenges in midfield, breaking up the flow.
58 min: Aaron Mooy has grown into this game, breaking down play repeatedly at the base of midfield. His latest disruption sets Australia on a well-manned attack but that man Kruse again proves the weak link in the chain.
First substitution of the game sees Poulsen replaced by Braithwaite. Surely Kruse for anybody can’t be much longer.
56 min: Australia’s Plan A - the ball to Leckie’s feet enabling him to spin inside and create space for Risdon - is working time and again but Risdon’s latest cross is poor and Denmark go down the other end and earn a corner.
54 min: End-to-end start to this second half with both teams motoring up and downfield with every turnover. From one counterattack Behich clips a lovely cross into the box but Larsen does well to clear at the far post under immense pressure.
51 min: Couple of chances for Denmark, first Poulsen drives towards the box before he’s felled by Jedinak - was that play-on or advantage from the referee? Hmmm, if that’s advantage, it’s a curious one. The ball breaks to Sisto just inside the area but he curls his shot wide of Ryan’s post. That looked like it should have been a very dangerous Eriksen free-kick opportunity, and possibly even a penalty depending on the point of contact. Escape for Australia.
Updated
50 min: Leckie is causing Denmark all sorts of problems drifting in from the right wing and creating space for Risdon to overlap outside him. Twice this half he’s been a better final ball away from creating something dangerous.
Australia's last five goals in competitive football (non-friendlies):
— James Willoughby (@jwilloughby26) June 21, 2018
Mile Jedinak penalty v Denmark
Mile Jedinak penalty v France
Mile Jedinak penalty v Honduras
Mile Jedinak penalty v Honduras
Mile Jedinak free-kick v Honduras#DENAUS #Socceroos #WorldCup #nervesofsteel
48 min: Australia have picked up where they left off with Leckie again buzzing in dangerous areas at the pointy end of Australia’s midfield.
“Being from Merseyside, I thought Leckie was actually his nickname and had assumed his surname was actually “Electricity”.” Ah, now I get the gag form earlier. Thanks, Andrew Champney.
46 min: Australia get the second half underway and immediately get Nabbout in behind Larsen.
Right, back to the football.
Roy Allen doesn’t think it was a pen for Australia. “I think that was a poor decision. Poulsen was jumping so his arms were in a natural position. No one jumps with their arms by their side. He wasn’t raising them to deliberately block the ball. There was no reaction time between the header and the ball hitting his hand. Hand ball is not hand ball if it is not deliberate. This is not to say that the VAR system is without merit. They’ve been getting most things right. But they got this wrong.”
After 15 minutes Eriksen and Sisto seemed like they were going to be run this game but Australia’s midfield fought back well, Mooy and Jedinak from deep, but more importantly Rogic and Leckie higher up the field. Once they were joined by the increasingly adventurous fullbacks they looked the better of the two teams.
I wonder if Stephen Armson would change his early assessment? “Can I just say that I would have preferred it if (a) Mathew Leckie had been left on the bench to be brought on when chasing the game, perhaps in the 80th minute, and (b) his nickname was “Emergency”? That’s all I have to contribute, sorry about that!”.
However, something along similar lines for the poor Robbie Kruse might be more acceptable.
@JPHowcroft I've often thought that penalties are an excessive punishment in many cases. It should only be when there is a clear goal threat, otherwise a regular free kick. Now that VAR is catching every foul, the problem with penalties is becoming more stark.
— David Nicholas (@bigwavenick) June 21, 2018
To the emails then, with VAR unsurprisingly to the fore. To recap, Mooy’s corner from the right swung outwards towards the head of the leaping Leckie, who timed his jump perfectly. His marker, Poulsen, was a fraction late on his bound, and as a consequence his arms were all over the place, meaning they were a liability for anything goalbound. To answer Scott Bassett, I’d say it was vanilla controversial, not extremely controversial.
“Is that the moment VAR won the battle for hearts and minds?” asks Ian Copestake. “VAR goes from zero to hero for the Aussies,” writes Nathan Eyland. Perhaps, it certainly won’t harm following the outcry after the France incident.
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Half time: Denmark 1-1 Australia
That was a full-blooded opening half of World Cup football. Eriksen’s beauty set things off and running but Australia grew into the contest the longer it went on and deserved their equaliser from the spot. All to play for after the break.
45 min: Long ball from Kjaer to Sisto almost splits Australia’s defence in twain but the lively Dane can’t bring the pass under control and Ryan collects.
43 min: Australia want another penalty when Sainsbury’s buffeted in the box underneath a looping Mooy free-kick but VAR is not interested despite it being ‘one of those you see given’.
41 min: Denmark come close to retaking the lead. Eriksen’s low free-kick from the right causes chaos in Australia’s box but a ricochet off Sainsbury’s knee falls into Ryan’s hands on the goalline.
Updated
GOAL! Denmark 1-1 Australia (Jedinak 38 pen)
Mile Jedinak makes it 12 from 12 from the spot for his country, calmly sending the ball into the half of the net vacated by the diving Schmeichel. Game on!
Updated
Penalty!
Australia have a lifeline! For the second game in a row the Socceroos have a penalty kick opportunity to equalise.
Leckie rose like CR7 on the penalty spot but his header was blocked almost immediately by the flailing arm of Yussuf Poulsen who was late to the contest. It looked dodgy at the time but it took VAR to confirm the indiscretion.
Poulsen receives a booking to add insult to injury.
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37 min: VAR is having a check...
36 min: Outswinging corner for Australia looks destined for Leckie’s forehead again but his effort is blocked. Was that handball?
34 min: Denmark are trying to settle this down but Australia are not letting them, intercepting any vertical passes and attacking down the flanks. Once again the fullbacks are prominent, as is Leckie who has excelled in the first half.
32 min: Over the past 10-15 minutes Australia have grown into the game. Rogic and Leckie have impressed but unfortunately there’s not enough cutting edge around them to convert promising moves into much-needed goals.
30 min: Oh dear Robbie Kruse. Another half-chance for Australia falls to the wrong man. Kruse dallies in the box after great work from Leckie and Denmark smother the ball away.
29 min: The opening half-hour has ticked along at a very decent tempo with few stoppages. There have been no shortage of challenges though, typified by a belter from Milligan who stepped out of defence to nip a dangerous counterattack in the bud.
Andrew Benton with a cricket gag: “I’ve had a moment of enlightenment - Australia haven’t got the classin the short form of the game. If football matches were to last as long as test matches, they’d be trouncing Denmark.”
28 min: Australia are having a bit of love out wide, isolating Denmark’s fullbacks one-on-one. They haven’t delivered a telling cross yet, or had enough bodies in the box to worry the Danes, but you can see the seeds of a plan being sown.
26 min: Decent phase of attacking play for Australia with both fullbacks getting forward in a rare incursion. Denmark do just enough in the air to clear their lines though.
“Seems to be more of the same from from Australia,” writes Kristofer McCormack. “They had plenty of success holding on to the ball against France, but that front three barring Leckie really don’t offer much up front. Perhaps a certain Tim Cahill might be more effective?” Nabbout and Kruse have been anonymous so far in Russia.
24 min: Jorgensen should score. Denmark do well to create space down the right, the cross beats the first defender and Jorgensen steams in like Lee Chapman circa 1991 but plants the header wide. Good old fashioned 4-4-2 football there.
23 min: Rogic again in the thick of the action, forcing a foul out of Delaney. The free-kick comes to nothing but the second phase ends with the Celtic man having a pop from distance but he drags it harmlessly wide of Schmeichel’s goal.
21 min: Sisto stings Ryan’s palms from range after Mooy once again concedes a cheap turnover in midfield.
A group of fans at one end all have horns that seem to be at very slightly different pitches. When they all go at the same time it's like a nightmarish Penderecki symphony.
— Nick Miller (@NickMiller79) June 21, 2018
19 min: Some good news for Australia is Tom Rogic is up for this one. He’s been much more involved than in recent matches, dropping deep to dictate play and rejoining attacks to deliver the key pass. Unfortunately three pieces of excellent work in quick succession were undone by Robbie Kruse.
17 min: Australia are retreating into that defensive mid-block as they did against France, offering Denmark’s centre-halves as much time on the ball as they wish. You’d might think they’d want to press higher at some point and attempt to unsettle the tempo of this game which has become all Denmark’s.
15 min: Denmark are dominating in midfield now with Sisto in particular catching the eye. “Does that count as a normal goal?” asks Phil D. Yes, yes it does. Although normal does an injustice to the quality of the finish.
Updated
13 min: Denmark settling into their work now, passing the ball nicely around their defence and midfield with plenty of movement and options. By contrast, Australia are looking nervy in transition, a little too eager to make the most of their attacking opportunities.
18 - Christian Eriksen has been directly involved in 18 goals in his last 15 appearances for Denmark (13 goals, 5 assists). Pivotal. #DEN #DENAUS #WorldCup
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) June 21, 2018
10 min: This is much more open than expected, Denmark’s forwards finding pockets between Australian lines while the Socceroos are making some neat combinations down the right with Leckie and Rogic to the fore.
8 min: Australia have had a couple of good moments down their right hand side through Leckie, earning a couple of corners, but now a goal behind they have an uphill task to remain in this World Cup.
GOAL! Denmark 1-0 Australia (Eriksen 7)
That man for Denmark, Christian Eriksen, with a powerful half-volley smashed beyond Mat Ryan. The ball was played up to JOrgensen who does well to chest the ball into the path of his advancing no.10 who doesn’t break stride to sweep a masterful volley into the roof of Australia’s net. Just goes to show how little of an opening Eriksen requires. Class.
Updated
4 min: Denmark have started well, targeting Australia down the middle. As against France Australia are looking to hit on the counter and they almost strike when Rogic does well with his back to goal but Kruse opts for the conservative when he could have gambled. Early indication of Australia’s conservatism under Van Marwijk.
2 min: Early free-kick to Denmark leads to an early corner to Denmark which leads to an early header for Denmark but Delaney can’t direct Sisto’s cross on target.
Peeeeeeepppppp!
Underway in Samara!
It’s a North American refereeing panel today, led by the USA’s Mark Geiger.
Updated
“The front row of Danish fans in your photo (21:39) shows that half of the formerly rambunctious roligans now carry cell phones to the game and only one in four even has a beer! So are they now mostly tee-totalling troligans? Modern football, eh?” Justin Kavanagh with the lament. Although I hear you can buy tap beer from corner stores in Samara, and they give you it in pressurised plastic bottles.
Thanks Breffni Lynch for this suggestion about cheerleading host broadcasters. “RTE in Ireland love to talk down the national team’s chances and regularly stick the verbal boot in. To wit: Eamon Dunphy rants and throws his pen (classic 1990)
It’s anthem time in Samara, which means kick-off is imminent.
For the second Australia match in a row, stadium management have cranked ‘Down Under’ by Men at Work to get the Socceroos fans singing. A legendary song, sure, but perhaps we can get some more variety for the next match. Send in your suggestions and I’ll have a word with the Fisht Stadium people in Sochi ahead of the Peru game...
In one of those decisions that is sure to bring out the ‘old man shakes fist at cloud’ brigade, both teams will be wearing their away strips tonight. That means Denmark in white shirts, red shorts, white socks, and Australia in all dark green.
BREAKING (WHITE) NEWS! ⚪⚪
— hummel (@hummel1923) June 20, 2018
Due to FIFA-regulations @DBUfodbold will wear the white away jersey against @Socceroos thursday 🙌
Browse it here:
🇩🇰: https://t.co/wO8a2jVoe7
🇬🇧: https://t.co/DNpqqsLY5o#ShareTheDream #Sharefootball #teamhummel #DEN #ForDanmark pic.twitter.com/qnSNbL3xOU
Presumably the traditional home strips of red and gold were considered too close for comfort, and once following the FIFA decision tree of light vs. dark, the only outcome would involve both clash kits.
BRILLIANT! The World Cup* is on the line tonight.
@JPHowcroft You'd think there'd be more fuss about this game, what with the Unofficial World Championship being on the line: https://t.co/5odDbu9c0h
— Stuart Henderson (@Stu_Henderson) June 21, 2018
*Not THE World Cup, but you get the idea.
534 - Kasper Schmeichel has kept a clean sheet in each of his last five matches for Denmark, last conceding a goal 534 minutes ago against the Republic of Ireland's Shane Duffy. Apple. #DEN #DENAUS #WorldCup pic.twitter.com/FveXvrWnxe
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) June 21, 2018
“The Socceroos to leave a browny green and gold smear in Schmiechel’s clean sheets,” emails Simon McRae.
This is a nice bit of fun to pass the time - a Best-XI from the opening round of matches. No Danes or Aussies mind you.
@JPHowcroft wishing the SBS coverage would stop telling us that Aus will win. They probably won’t, but it will be great if they do. Let’s be realistic, & cross our fingers ...
— James Humberstone 🌈 (@JamesHumbers) June 21, 2018
Question for readers around the world: is there a broadcaster that isn’t bellicose in its support for the country it operates in?
In other World Cup news, a worrying story emerging from Colombia.
If you’re on this page, and you’re not a subscriber to The Fiver, what is wrong with you!? Address your failings.
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You’ll be hearing a lot about Christian Eriksen tonight I’m sure, so get your eyeballs around this before kick-off.
There was plenty of wailing and gnashing of teeth in Australia about VAR following the opening round loss to France but Sean Ingle is in no doubt video technology is here to stay.
The crowd is filing into the Samara Arena with less than 30 minutes until kick-off. The 44,918 seater is located on the outskirts of this picturesque city, which straddles the mighty Volga river. The stadium - to be renamed Cosmos Arena following the World Cup - is designed in homage to Samara’s contribution to space exploration. The design originally envisaged a transparent cladding, but that was scrapped during construction - probably for budgetary reasons. At the moment there’s one solid block of Danish fans in full voice, while the top tier is looking very golden.
This is interesting.
Only 36% of goals scored have been "normal" this World Cup. If you think that's weird it's because it is. Very weird actually. pic.twitter.com/vIWwLxpXeH
— Alex Olshansky (@atosoccer) June 20, 2018
John Davidson spoke to fromer Danish international striker Mikkel Beck, who stated the obvious about Australia’s need to “improve offensively”.
“On those running stats,” emails Mike MacKenzie, “I recall Arsene Wenger opining a couple years back on distance stats that maybe it’s better to not run quite so much until the late stage of game so you have more energy left for critical final part.” Which is a fair point, unless you don’t have to worry about energy conservation... *cough* *cough*
Kieran Pender, one of Guardian Australia’s reporters in Russia, took a break from the football (sort of) to find out what kind of diplomatic preparation is required to support a nation participating in a World Cup.
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The host city for this homage to Mary, Crown Princess of Denmark, is Samara in southwestern Russia. The city has a population of around 1.1million, the stadium holds around 45,000 spectators, and the iconic landmark is a 68-metre, 20-ton monument of the Soyuz carrier rocket, built to commemorate Yuri Gagarin’s space flight.
It’s mild and sunny, in case you were wondering about the weather. There is a bit of a westerly breeze but that’s unlikely to influence proceedings in the state of the art concrete bowl.
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Ever wanted to see Tim Cahill’s shinpads?
This nugget of data has received plenty of attention in recent days, mainly for its nod and wink towards the endurance of the host nation. It also highlights how Australia did a stack of running against France. Not as much as Russia, but still.
Enjoyed watching Russia in #WorldCup
— Mr James Hodari 💯 (@MrJamesHodari) June 20, 2018
But I'm skeptical of the huge step-up in performance from a nation with a history of state-sponsored doping
Decided to have a look at distance run and every team fell within 1.4 standard deviations of the mean... Except for #Russia pic.twitter.com/8bRqBAS9kE
Kieran Pender has more on Austraila’s preparations for today’s game, including Bert van Marwijk reinforcing the safety-first mentality. “First we have to do exactly the same as what we did against France, with a lot of discipline... Now we have to find in detail where the Danish must have problems.”
It could be the 90-minutes that determines the Dutchman’s short tenure as Socceroos coach. Win and he’s a pragmatic genius. Lose and it’s full steam ahead root and brach review of the game and all that ails it.
@JPHowcroft Grr. Had I realised Denmark were playing, I would have worn my Danish "South Africa here we come" t-shirt. Bought 2 days before they crashed out of that tournament.
— Bob O'Hara (@BobOHara) June 21, 2018
They were a glorious couple of days though, right?
The Schmeichel family know a bit about goalkeeping and Kasper proved he was a chip off the old block last week when he broke father Peter’s national record for minute’s played without conceding a goal. Martha Kelner on that and more from the Danish camp.
Nathan Eyland wins the rusty badge for first email of the day. “The big question is ‘who does the Aussie Danish princess support?’.”
For those not in the know, Mary, Crown Princess of Denmark, is from Hobart.
Denmark XI
One change for Denmark with Lasse Schone replacing the injured William Kvist in midfield.
Her er vores startopstilling til kampen mod @Socceroos - kom så!#ForDanmark #WorldCup #DENAUS #DEN pic.twitter.com/hAIIGmtaR1
— Fodboldlandsholdene (@dbulandshold) June 21, 2018
No prizes for guessing who the centre of attention will be for Denmark tonight, Spurs superstar Christian Eriksen.
Australia XI
Australia are unchanged from the side that lost late-on to France in their opening match. That means any greater attacking threat will have to come from tactical adjustments rather than revamped personnel.
Australia, your starting XI is in!
— Socceroos (@Socceroos) June 21, 2018
⚽️ Denmark v @Socceroos
🏟 Samara Arena
⌚️ 10pm AEST, 9:30pm ACST, 8pm AWST
📺 LIVE on @OptusSport and @TheWorldGame #GoSocceroos pic.twitter.com/PlNiWtAg3E
Once again the focus will be on Tom Rogic to deliver from his no.10 role. The Celtic schemer failed to stamp his authority on the game against France and Australia will need their most creative force to fire if they are to secure the result they desperately need.
In Australia tonight’s match was always going to be screened on free-to-air channel SBS but the long-time home of football has been gifted a truckload more World Cup games after streaming service Optus Sport conceded it could not fulfil its obligations to consumers. It has been a torrid week for the unloved telco and after facing a barrage of criticism from the prime minister down they are now in damage limitation mode.
Sydney harbour getting into the World Cup spirit.
How good is this!
— Socceroos (@Socceroos) June 21, 2018
The Sydney Harbour Bridge has had a green and gold makeover to show support to the @Socceroos and the @qantaswallabies.
Awesome from @destinationnsw!#GoSocceroos pic.twitter.com/m0JNMr4smG
Preamble
Hello everybody and welcome to live coverage of the first match of day eight of Russia 2018 between Denmark and Australia. Kick off is 4pm (1pm UK / 10pm Australia) which gives us plenty of time to dial that World Cup fever up to 11.
This is a Group C contest that pits two teams who experienced contrasting fortunes in their opening matches. Denmark were somewhat fortunate to come away from their clash with Peru with all three points while Australia could count themselves a little unlucky to have departed their skirmish with France empty handed.
The consequences of those results shapes tonight’s tactical battle. With something of a bonus win in the bag already the pressure is off the Danes, who need not make the running in a game where a draw would not be the worst result. The same cannot be said of Australia for whom a point could effectively spell the end of their tournament. However, Bert van Marwijk has drilled his side to focus on defence, a strategy that will require some embellishment in pursuit of points.
As always, this is more fun if you join in, so feel free to fling any emails to jonathan.howcroft.freelance@guardian.co.uk or tweets to @JPHowcroft. I’ll do my best to get to as many as I can.
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