Denmark are one of the teams that although they mightn’t be favourites in the FIFA World Cup 2022, are expected to display an entertaining style of play and make life difficult for every team that competes against them.
The Danes have shown character against some of the most challenging teams in the last calendar year thanks to a squad full of experience and talent and a suitable strategy. With most of the players playing in the top 5 European leagues on a club level, it is no surprise that they achieved victories against the current World champions France twice in the UEFA Nations League tournament.
The team has also earned six wins in their last seven games of the World Cup Qualifications, showing consistency and making a statement that they will be fighting for the top spot in Group D, where they will compete against Australia, France and Tunisia.
Kasper Hjulmand, who has been in charge of the team since 2020, has managed to build a flexible side that reached the European Championship semi-final last year and showed potential for the upcoming tournament in Qatar.
The Danish Dynamite are expected to show a solid performance off the ball, but to experience struggles with it, considering the lack of a distinguished finisher who can take advantage of the chances created by the experienced midfield.
In this scout report, we use tactical analysis to explain Denmark’s tactics and their strengths and weaknesses.
Predicted starting XI
The manager’s tactical flexibility sees him easily switch between 4-3-3 and back-three formations, constantly seeking different ways to improve the team performance and surprise the opposition. It is expected that he will predominantly rely on the 4-3-3 scheme throughout the tournament, although his starting XI is equally as unpredictable as his tactical changes.
However, some players have earned his trust, and he is expected to rely on them for this new challenge. The 35-year-old Kasper Schmeichel remains the main option for the goalkeeping spot as his experience and leadership are important not only for the team’s defensive performance but for their confidence as a unit.
While his club, Nice, are not convincing in the current Ligue 1 season, he has secured his starting spot with his performance on the international scene.
The left-back position will be occupied by Joakim Mæhle, who is capable of disturbing the opposing players by constantly joining in the attack and creating overloads. He became a crucial part both of the Denmark national team and his club Atalanta, where he strolls up and down the left flank, trying to threaten the opposition while still meeting the expectations in defence.
The other full-back spot is expected to be covered by Rasmus Kristensen. The 25-year-old has been one of the best performers for his club Leeds United since the start of the season and will balance out the team’s defensive performance by compensating for Mæhle’s offensive movement.
Andreas Christensen and Joachim Andersen will be the pair in central defence as they formed a good partnership for Denmark, with Milan‘s Simon Kjær most likely to be left as an additional option, despite his leading qualities and experience.
However, Hjulmand won’t take any risks with his midfield picks, lining up Thomas Delaney, Christian Eriksen and Pierre-Emile Højbjerg to dominate centrally and have stability both on and off the ball.
The manager’s quality options in attack are more limited, and it is yet unclear if he will rely on a particular player for the whole tournament or rotate them. The left-wing is reserved for Mikkel Damsgaard, while the in-form Andreas Skov Olsen will be the threat from the right.
The 25-year-old Kasper Dolberg might get the chance to lead the attack, despite the slow start of his spell at Sevilla, where he is yet to score.
Denmark’s age profile shows that Hjulmand prefers to rely mainly on players in their prime years instead of risking with too many youngsters. As the graph underlines, most of the squad players are between 24 and 30 years of age – having gained enough experience but still being in their prime.
There are still figures like Eriksen, Delaney and Kjær whose presence gives the rest of the players confidence and guidance.
Attacking phase
As already mentioned, the Danish Dynamite might experience struggles in the attacking phase. The graph here confirms their weaknesses compared to the rest of the teams participating in the World Cup. Despite the percentile of forward passes that they complete and their aim to perform high-intensity football, the number of shots per 90 isn’t satisfying enough.
That’s often a result of their inability to hold onto the ball in the advanced areas and to take advantage of their chances. They often find difficulties in exploiting quality areas and occupying the box. However, their secret weapon in attack has been their set-piece opportunities, which they succeed in converting into goals. The team do not have different outlets in attack, and often their crossing attempts are not enough to threaten the goal.
Most of their attacking movement is executed through the flanks. They usually focus their actions on one side, while they keep the other one more passive to balance out their defensive performance and not leave gaps behind.
The players’ inability to retain possession in the advanced areas and to win their offensive duels often stops them from creating goalscoring opportunities. Even in the cases where they manage to reach the final third, the lack of a distinguished finisher results in a low number of accurate shots, respectively low efficiency.
Defensive phase
Things look different defensively for the Danes. As the graph illustrates, they perform better than the average compared to the rest of the teams in the competition. The team try to apply constant pressure on their opponents, and that results in a high number of recoveries per game. The high press that they employ helps them in recovering possession in the final third rather frequently, which helps them in avoiding dangerous attacks and being solid defensively.
The team rely on the players’ anticipation skills as well and focus on intercepting passes, which decreases the number of conceded shots per 90, although the shots they do allow are often from quality areas and on target.
They succeed in their direct defensive challenges and their well-measured actions rarely result in fouls, which decreases the opposition’s chances to create goalscoring opportunities.
The only thing that takes off of their defensive performance is Mæhle’s active offensive role. His movement to the advanced areas often means that the spaces behind him can be exploited should the opposition recover possession and make a quick turnover. However, in most cases, the midfield players do provide additional support and cover depth whenever any of their teammates are out of position.
Transitions
Denmark rely on frequent passing and focus on a high pass completion rate in their aim to retain control of the games. The team have averaged an 85.3% accuracy of their passes in the last calendar year, which has helped them in being more efficient in their attacking movement and in dominating over their opponents.
They actively involve Schmeichel in their ball retention and build-up from the back which allows the team to occasionally move into a more advanced position and bypass the opposing press more easily.
Not only does the team try to overload the central areas so they have better options in attack, but it also helps them focus their pressing efforts in the midfield where they can block the opposition’s attacks and recover the ball successfully. This happens with the active involvement of the full-backs who move into more advanced positions and create overloads by joining the midfielders.
Attackers
The forwards’ data is not satisfying enough both at a club and international level, which is why it is considered that the manager might have difficulties picking the right partnerships upfront. Surprisingly, one of the most efficient players in front of the goal during the qualifications has been the left-back Mæhle, who has scored five goals. Only Skov Olsen has matched this achievement, with none of the other attackers creating enough opportunities.
Most of the attackers are struggling at club level as well, not getting enough playing time and respectively failing in fulfilling their responsibilities.
Skov Olsen is the only one who has impressed in the league too, scoring seven goals and assisting three more in 16 games for Club Brugge. His aim to cut inside with the ball allows him to provide a direct threat instead of sticking only to crossing and supporting his fellow attackers’ movement. As his Penetrating Carries map in the Belgian First Division A shows, he frequently carries the ball to quality areas which allows him to convert the team’s chances into goals.
Midfielders
The midfielders are the ones that balance out the team’s performance. As already explained, the manager has relied on experienced players, which all can be described as “key” for their performance both on and off the ball.
The three of them have perfectly split responsibilities and have different profiles, which allows Denmark to achieve that balance. Delaney is more supportive of the defensive phase and his presence centrally is key for breaking opposition attacks and keeping the ball away from their own goal.
Højbjerg’s role is connected to ball progression and distribution as he often orchestrates play and supports the team movement with his passing. Eriksen, on the other hand, is more involved in attacking actions and trying to create opportunities for his teammates. He is also considered a major threat from attacking set-pieces.
Højbjerg’s pass map from the World Cup Qualifications shows his huge contribution in possession. The frequency and accuracy of his actions are key for the team to be able to advance the ball.
The midfielders create a good connection between the lines, although they often lack support from the attacking players as they struggle in exploiting quality areas and making good combinations.
Defenders
The manager has a few defensive options but seems to have found the right partnerships at the back. The central pair Christensen and Andersen proved solid enough and have minimised the mistakes done in dangerous areas and the number of lost balls in the games.
As mentioned, Kjær is another option for the central defence as his experience and composure can help the team in critical situations. However, the timing of his interventions is sometimes off, which results in losing possession or committing fouls, hence the team conceding dangerous attacks.
The full-backs’ contribution defensively is equally as important. Mæhle constantly applies pressure on the opposing players and adds to the team’s performance with 8.14 recoveries on average per game.
Kristensen’s defensive performance is even more efficient as he is more focused on his actions off the ball, averaging an 80% success rate in his defensive duels.
The map of Kristensen’s defensive territory throughout the UEFA Nations League games underlines the areas of his defensive engagement. It shows that he contributes with defensive actions both in the advanced areas and deeply in Denmark’s own half.
Key player
Højbjerg is one of the most important players in Denmark’s current set-up, as he is for his club Tottenham, and his player profile shows what are the strengths that make him a leading figure. Of course, the focus falls on his passing data, which underlines his distinguished abilities and his contribution to ball progression compared to the average for his position.
As shown, he overperforms in every indicator, starting with the frequency and accuracy of his passes and moving to the number of forward-directed passes. His determination to help the team move forward and retain possession is underlined by passing metrics and, in particular, his 90.96% pass success rate and the 8.42 progressive passes per 90 that he completes.
He isn’t as efficient in attack, though this is something affected by his role and main responsibilities. However, we can see that he still provides more passes to the penalty area compared to the other players in his position.
As his defensive stats show, while the frequency of his defensive actions is low, his efficiency is impressive as he succeeds in most of the indicators. His success rate in the direct interventions is positive and above the average for the position.
Tournament prediction
Denmark have a real chance to reach the top spot in Group D, as France have been disturbed by the injuries of key players who are expected to miss the competition.
While they have proved they have the quality to resist every opposition defensively, not being able to convert chances into goals might be a huge deal-breaker for them both in the group and if they eventually proceed to the next stage.
If they find the right formula in attack, the Danish Dynamite have the chance to move past the round of 16, although, realistically, there are teams with much more quality in the squad.
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