Australia vs Denmark: Who will win and secure progression?
Australia and Denmark are set to battle for a coveted spot in the 2022 FIFA World Cup round of 16 when they lock horns on Tuesday. Both sides are still in the running for a knockout rounds spot, but with France already having secured progression, there only remains one available slot in Group B.
Graham Arnold’s side come into this contest having recovered from a heavy 4-1 loss to France on matchday one by beating Tunisia 1-0, which sees them sitting in second spot with four points. The win was especially notable as Australia have historically struggled at World Cups, and to date have only won just three games, including the narrow victory over Tunisia. To date, the Socceroos have only made it out of their group, which was 16 years ago during the 2006 edition of this competition, and they have really found things difficult when it comes to taking on European sides.
Including their 4-1 loss, which saw them take an early lead but then crumble as France scored four sans reply, Australia have lost eight of their last 11 meetings with European teams at World Cups. Still, they might take respite in the fact that one of the three matches that they avoided defeat was back in 2018, when they drew Denmark 1-1. Overall, they have won just one of their last four meetings with the Scandinavian nation, which was a 1-0 victory during a friendly back in June 2010.
Meanwhile Denmark will be desperate for a much needed win. Based on their strong form coming into this contest – including winning nine of their qualifying games – many rated Kasper Hjulmand’s team as potential dark horses. However, the Scandinavian side have failed to live up to expectations so far. They might have picked up more points during qualification than any other European side, but that hasn’t translated into success at this year’s World Cup.
Denmark were held to a frustrating scoreless stalemate against Tunisia before losing 2-1 to France. Earlier this year, they had beaten Les Bleus both home and away and were hoping to become the first side to beat the reigning World Cup winners three times in the same calendar year.
As things stand, Denmark are on the cusp of an early exit – unless if they can avoid defeat to Australia. To date, they have made it out of the group stages in four of their last five World Cups but will need to snap a five match winless streak in this competition and avoid the same result that befall them when they faced Australia four years ago.
With France already through, the match to watch in this quartet will be Australia and Denmark, with both sides in contention for a knockout rounds berth. Although Tunisia haven’t yet been eliminated, it’s hard to see them getting a result against a France side who has been quite solid so far at this year’s event. Of course, with France expected to rotate, Tunisia just may surprise everyone.
But that won’t matter much to Australia or Denmark, who will be firmly focused on their respective tasks ahead. Will Denmark be able to recover from two negative results to book their spot in the round of 16? Or will it be Australia to enter unchartered territory for the first time since 2006?
