State Of Denmark’s Football Makes Betting On Them Tricky
Posted: September 9, 2015
Updated: October 6, 2017
The trip to Yerevan should have sealed an automatic place in the Euro 2016 finals for the Danes but the state of Denmark’s football meant they came away with a nil-nil draw that leaves their chances now of automatic qualification in the hands of matches beyond their control. The question is; Will the boys from the land of Hamlet make it?
When sorrows come, they come not single spies but in battalions (Claudius, Act III, Scene V) and right now the residents of Copenhagen have to be wondering if their positions haven’t been overrun by hoards of these warriors of sadness. Those that like to bet on sports in Denmark will probably already be aware of their lackluster performance against Armenia. They probably had money on the game, a game the Danes really could have done with winning.
Are The Danes Doomed?
• No goals against Albania
• Nil-nil draw against Armenia
• Next game they face Portugal
Their sad goal-devoid draw against Albania in the Parken Stadium was a massive disappointment to fans, and the team knew it. Their head coach admitted; “We had chances to beat Albania and we can’t be satisfied.” Which means they should have bucked themselves up for their next game against Armenia, a nation not actually known for its footballing prowess. The Danes simply needed a win, but the state of Denmark’s football let them down.
There is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so (Hamlet, Act II, Scene II) and perhaps then it was the thinking behind their strategy that was most at fault for the draw against Armenia, a team they should have beaten. After the Albania match coach Morten Olsen said the had to “have a plan” for “overcoming” Armenia, but then almost instantly negated that sentiment by saying; “It’s about minimizing the opponents’ chances.”
State Of Denmark’s Euro 2016 Chances Aren’t Good
It’s about minimizing the opponents’ chances? Er….No, Morty, no it isn’t. Football is about scoring more goals than the opposition, and going into a game with the focal aim being merely stopping them netting one rather than you knocking home at least two is not the sort of thing that instills confidence in players about to take to the field of play. Oh I’m certain they went in looking for the win, but they weren’t going to risk anything to get it.
Now if you’re Danish gambling laws of averages means that these poor draws will produce some sort of superhuman effort against Portugal next game out, think again, there was nothing in the performance against either Albania or Armenia that indicated the state of Denmark’s football could rise to that level and whilst we know what we are, but know not what we may be (Ophelia, Act IV, Scene V) the Danes can’t have much confidence in their own abilities to be more than they have been.
Against Portugal the Danes will have to step up and the state of Denmark’s fans is likely to be one of cautious optimism that they can salvage a draw from that game, given draws are the best they can seem to hope for from their team, however those could be vain hopes indeed as the Portuguese have won their last five games straight, sit on the top of the table three points clear and, perhaps most crucially, convincingly beat Denmark 1-0 when last they met in October of last year.
Fans Lament The State Of Denmark’s Footballing Skills
So then Denmark must shrug off this defensive attitude, this aim not to lose, and throw a little caution to the wind, and display more matter with less art (Gertrude, Act I, Scene II) against Portugal. The state of Denmark in terms of the table for Group I is nothing to write home about despite their being in second place, and that prized automatic qualification now depends on Albania not doing as well as they’ve shown themselves to be capable of.
Reading the gambling news stories, the bookies, on sites like ComeOn! Sportsbook or Partycasino Denmark, you will be unsurprised to hear, are giving Portugal the edge, and their odds on Denmark per se are really quite gloom inspiring. The chances of the Danes qualifying might not be too bad, (even if they might need to play off against other third placed teams to do it) but such is the state of Denmark’s football their chances of coming away with the trophy in Paris next year are 80/1 at best.
Perhaps they’ll be fortunate and qualify as one of the best placed third ranked teams, but given their luck has been absent, I won’t be putting my money on them surprising us with such good fortune and it may be quite some time before their qualification is assured. Something is rotten in the state of Denmark (Marcellus, Act I, Scene IV) and it’s sadly their performance in the Euro 2016 qualifiers, which means you should probably bet on Portugal instead.