A penny for the thoughts of Christian Eriksen. Denmark could justify leaving the 33-year-old out of their squad for the meetings with Scotland and Greece on the basis he remains unemployed. Yet as the hosts huffed, puffed and failed to unpick a magnificently drilled Scotland defence, the issue of what Eriksen could have contributed was such an obvious one. Denmark in this form will not play at next summer’s World Cup.
Steve Clarke’s Scotland were worthy of their point. But for a lack of composure in front of goal, they would have departed Copenhagen with all three. The winners from this opening night of a truncated section were the Greeks, who swept Belarus aside 5-1, but Scotland richly deserved their full-time ovation from an appreciative support. Denmark were booed off.
“A good, disciplined performance,” said Clarke. “We knew we would have to defend well and certainly did that. We have five more tough games, we are under no illusions about that. You don’t go to the World Cup easily.”
Clarke sprang a surprise with the deployment of two strikers, Che Adams and Lyndon Dykes, from the outset. “If I am not brave, I might as well not be in the job,” said the manager. Equally striking was the sight of John McGinn, who has typically operated on the left or centre of midfield for his country, on the right. Rasmus Højlund, fresh from his loan move from Manchester United to Napoli, was among Denmark’s replacements.
Scotland had been sloppy in possession before McGinn missed a wonderful chance to give his team the lead. Lewis Ferguson’s deep corner evaded everyone, with the Aston Villa midfielder left alone at the back post. McGinn seemed surprised by his opportunity and scuffed his shot wide. The opening increased Scottish belief, with Adams only just failing to connect with a teasing Ryan Christie cross. Christie was the next to try his luck, curling a shot high and wide from 19 yards after Ferguson had pinched the ball in midfield.
Denmark had enjoyed plenty of first-half possession without particularly troubling Angus Gunn in the Scotland goal. Gunn reacted smartly to smother the ball before Kasper Dolberg could latch on to an Anders Dreyer through-pass, 10 minutes before the break. Generally, though, the Danes were laboured. Christie should have punished that, the Bournemouth man instead heading McGinn’s cross wide after 38 minutes. Clarke would have been by far the more content coach at the interval, if slightly concerned by Scottish profligacy. This was not a half that will linger long in anybody’s memory.
Joakim Mæhle deflected a McGinn drive wide as the visitors began the second period on the front foot. Scott McTominay bobbed and weaved his way through, only to be denied by the feet of Kasper Schmeichel. Clarke would have been well within his rights during the interval to tell his players to be more confident against an underwhelming Denmark team. The early signs were that was precisely what Scotland’s manager did.
It felt inevitable that Denmark had to offer more. The 53rd minute saw their finest move thus far, culminating in a low attempt from Pierre-Emile Højbjerg that flew only narrowly wide via Grant Hanley’s deflection. Hanley, routinely the subject of heavy criticism when in Scotland colours, was excellent all evening.
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Dykes should have edged the Scots in front before the hour mark. Aaron Hickey found McGinn, who sent Adams clear on the right flank. Adams played the ball across to his strike partner, who looked certain to blast a first-time shot at Schmeichel. Dykes inexplicably delayed, allowing Rasmus Kristensen to recover. Kristensen could not believe his luck. Dreyer almost dished out immediate retribution courtesy of a long-range shot which rippled Gunn’s side netting.
Scotland survived a scare, just after Max Johnston replaced Hickey at right-back. Mika Biereth raced to meet a long ball from Schmeichel, which Johnston blocked after raising his arm. Danish fans appealed vociferously for a red, given Biereth would have been through on goal but for Johnston’s intervention. After a monitor check, the referee refused to alter his original call of a booking for the Scotland player. The ball appeared to strike Johnston above the T-shirt line, with Biereth also nudging his opponent.
Denmark called on Højlund without it making any material difference. Højberg had the night’s final chance, but headed straight at Gunn. “We had the ball a lot but didn’t do enough with it,” said the Denmark coach Brian Riemer. His assessment was perfectly fair.
