The second part of the Euro 2024 schedule on Sunday sees Group C getting up and running and it does so with the semi-finalist of the last tournament in Denmark who start their campaign against Slovenia in Stuttgart.
These two teams are in a group with England so there might be a feeling that they are playing for second place. That makes this one a game neither can afford to lose, although they would do their chances the world of good were they to win.
Where to watch
The match will be shown live and in full on the ITV1 channel in the UK with the build-up getting underway at 4.10pm ahead of the 6pm kick off.
Slovenia
This is a big tournament for Slovenia. They have waited 24 years to be back on the top European stage and now that there are here they will be keen to avoid just making up the numbers. They won seven of their 10 qualifying games and while you could argue that it was more of a competitive group than one that had elite teams in it, to win seven games in any group merits respect. One problem with the group was it was Denmark that they finished behind and only picked up one point in their two matches against them.
You get the feeling that if Slovenia are going to have the tournament that they seek then Benjamin Sesko will have to show just why Premier League teams are said to be interested in him. I don’t think Slovenia will be quite as defensive as some of the outsiders who qualify for these things but at the same time I am not expecting them to be overly expansive so if they can keep things tight for the first period they might get some joy later in the game.
Denmark
Denmark are no strangers to a decent run at the European Championship having won this tournament as a complete outsider in 1992 and then reaching the semi-finals of it three years ago where England only got the better of them in extra time. The question is whether they are a better side from then and that is probably fuelled by a World Cup campaign which never really got going. In the last decade or so their better work has come through Christian Eriksen but his best days are behind him.
The Danes were solid in qualifying and still have the likes of Kasper Schmeichel between the sticks who has plenty of tournament experience and will want to emulate his father who was in goal in 1992. They also have some young blood in the team too which will be important and can probably fly under the radar at the outset of this event given that England are in their group. After the poor showing at the World Cup they’ll be eager for a positive start here.
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Team News
Slovenia have given off the impression that they have no injury concerns going into this match so the only decision that they have to make will come in their formation where they are expected to operate with a back four.
Denmark coach Kasper Hjulmand seemed to suggest that some of his players are lacking match fitness and has promised to use all five substitutes in this match to ensure that he protects his men for the future games.
Betting
I would expect Denmark to win this match but they are a little short for me in the tournament opener so I am going to look for another way in to getting them onside and while a number of their player shots on target markets appeal I think the best bet is for them to have over 5.5 corners over the course of the 90 minutes, a line I’m surprised we can get almost even money on when you consider the outcome in the two qualifying matches between the pair.
Denmark won 18 corners across the two games, 10 in one and eight in the other so that would suggest that this line is a little on the low side. They are a team with a strong set-piece record so they go in search of them and with their wing-backs sent forward to overload two wide forwards it is fair to say that they get a lot of joy. Only Belgium won more corners than the Danes in qualifying and Denmark won 12 corners against Sweden in a warm up game a week or so ago. I’ll back them to get half a dozen here.
Tips
Back Denmark – Over 5.5 corners for a 3/10 stake at 1.95 with BetVictor
