 |
1/8 Final - Nigeria-Denmark, Great Danes eliminate Nigeria |
 |
Denmark pulled off one of the shocks of the World Cup on Sunday, trouncing heavily favored Nigeria 4-1 to reach the quarterfinals and shatter African hopes.
The Danes have only been in one previous World Cup, when they played with panache before a 5-1 second-round defeat to Spain in 1986. Now, they meet champions Brazil in the last eight on Friday.
"We will be playing the best team in the world," said their Swedish, coach Bo Johansson. "So far we are not the best team in the world but we'll give them a hard game for sure."
Unrecognizable from the toothless-looking side of the first round, Denmark set about rewriting its history with a vengeance at the Stade de France against a talented team that had destroyed Spain's hopes and been tipped by many to go all the way.
But it was Denmark which led 2-0 after 12 minutes.
The Danes were up 4-0 by the 78th and the Nigerians knew that even they -- the comeback kings who won the 1996 Olympic title by coming from behind against Brazil and Argentina -- were dead.
The third goal was one of the fastest ever for a player appearing on the pitch and then scoring.
Ebbe Sand came on as a 59th-minute substitute and scored in the 60th. FIFA spokesman Keith Cooper said Sand had been on for 22 seconds but the ball was in play for only 16.
"It was a little bit the old famous Danish way of playing," Johansson said. "In 1986 they played a fantastic couple of games. This was a little bit of the same."
Denmark beat Uruguay 6-1 and West Germany 2-0 in the first round of the 1986 tournament.
The last of five African sides in France is now out of the tournament.
It was the second time in two World Cups that Nigeria had looked impressive only to go out in the second round. In 1994, the Nigerians lost to Italy after a good win against Bulgaria.
Nigeria pulled one back through substitute Tijani Babangida in the 78th minute and had its chances but the lack of injured striker Daniel Amokachi and a desperate night for goalkeeper Peter Rufai meant the Nigerians were fighting a losing battle at both ends.
Striker Peter Moller opened the scoring with what was surely one of the most sensational World Cup debuts of recent memory, scoring with virtually his first touch of the ball.
Michael Laudrup ran to the edge of the area and then flicked deftly sideways into Moller's path. Moller, 26, had the space to crash a shot past Rufai.
Michael Laudrup then teed the ball up from a free kick, Moller cracked a shot through Jay-Jay Okocha's legs and Rufai could only parry it to Brian Laudrup who fired home.
Sand's goal was again stamped with the Michael Laudrup hallmark. The man who will retire as soon as the Danes get knocked out floated in a high ball which Sand neatly trapped, before sidestepping the defense and shooting past Rufai. Michael's brother Brian Laudrup had hit the bar in the 52nd, sending in a high looping ball that had the diving Rufai beaten.
"We had a playmaker tonight, Michael Laudrup, in fantastic form," said Johansson.
Thomas Helveg, a constant hive of industry, was rewarded with the fourth goal in the 76th after another bad mistake by Rufai, who failed to hold a Martin Jorgensen shot.
Sand won it back to Jorgensen, who found Helveg.
Nigeria, hoping at least to match Cameroon's 1990 achievement of reaching the quarterfinals, should have scored through Nwankwo Kanu in the 17th minute but the Inter Milan player dithered too long in the box.
"We lost concentration and went 2-0 down and after that it was very hard to do anything about it," said crestfallen Serbian-born coach Bora Milutinovic, who has taken four different countries to the second round of the World Cup.
"I'm not happy to finish the cup in this way."
