Leicester City defender Jannik Vestergaard played a key role as Denmark progressed to the knockout stages of Euro 2024 with a draw against Serbia.
Jannik Vestergaard has had a brilliant season for his club and knew it could continue if Denmark got a point and Slovenia did not beat England.
That is exactly what happened, with both of the final games of Group C ending 0-0, meaning Denmark will face hosts Germany in the round of 16 on Saturday.
Former Leicester City goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel had a relatively quiet night, whilst left-back Victor Kristiansen – who spent last season on loan at Bologna – came on for the last 13 minutes.
However, one player who did not have a quiet night was Vestergaard, with his performance earning widespread praise in the Danish media.
Jannik Vestergaard hailed for Denmark performance v Serbia
Vestergaard had the unenviable task of marking Aleksandar Mitrovic; Serbia’s record goalscorer who now plies his trade in Saudi Arabia.
Mitrovic is a bullish, physical striker but Vestergaard was every bit a match for the Serb as he prevented him registering a single shot on target.
Danish media were highly complimentary of the Leicester centre-back’s display, with Vestergaard receiving the highest rating in three different outlets.
Sport.tv2 gave the 31-year-old man of the match with a score of eight out of ten, commenting: “The king of the airspace. Denmark’s best player by far. Won all of his aerial duels, and it was important, because the game in the air was the Serbian’s best.”
B.T scored Vestergaard a five out of six in their ratings, highlighting his tackle on Mitrovic that stopped the striker going through on goal before adding: “The Danish giant showed that sharpness in general in his defensive actions, where he was constantly a saviour when things got hot”.
Bold labelled the defender ‘Denmark’s bouncer’, before saying: “Smart of the national coach to throw him into the middle of Denmark’s three-back chain when someone like Vestergaard has no speed.
That deficiency in the game was not at all to be seen against a good enough physically roaring strong, but also very slow Aleksandar Mitrovic”.
Vestergaard will fancy chances against Germany
The shutout against Serbia should give Denmark confidence they can be equally resolute against Germany on Saturday.
The Danes are yet to lose in the tournament, but they are also yet to win; with their three draws in the group stage enough to see them finish ahead of Slovenia despite having identical records.
This is because when all else is tied, the team with the higher European qualifiers ranking goes ahead in the standings.
Germany have been impressive so far, beating Scotland 5-1 before winning against Hungary and drawing with Switzerland, but Vestergaard should be confident of handling the hosts’ frontline.
If Denmark can frustrate the likes of Kai Havertz, Jamal Musiala and Florian Wirtz then they could find a way to edge past the Germans in what would be a major shock.
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