In 2018, the Danish stars refused to compete because of a premium dispute – with the EM there was now reconciliation.
On Thursday afternoon, the Danes boarded the plane back home. In Copenhagen the fans were already waiting to give their stars a warm welcome.
Hjem til Danmark ✈️🇩🇰 # ForDanmark # EURO2020 pic.twitter.com/BK7rlDkYNk
– DBU – En Del Af Noget Større (@DBUfodbold) July 8, 2021
That was not always so.
For three weeks now, no sheet has fitted between the Danish team players and their supporters. For example, striker Martin Braithwaite said after winning the quarter-finals against the Czechs: “I wish I were in Copenhagen now. How I would like to celebrate there now. “
Greedy mercenaries
It was different three years ago. Quite different: At that time there was a deep crack through football Denmark. Back then, people heard and read about the players that they were “mercenaries greedy for money” and even “traitors”.
What happened? Denmark was due to play a test match in Slovakia on September 5, 2018. But in the run-up, a heated argument broke out between the players and the association. Officially, it was about better insurance protection and the protection of personal rights. In truth, of course, it was about the money and the amount of bonuses for the players. The ringleaders back then included Christian Eriksen and Simon Kjær, of all people, who are now, almost three years later, the darlings of Danes fans.
But back to 2018. The two divided parties could not come to an agreement. Therefore, Denmark ran in Bratislava under the direction of the Austrian referee Julian Weinberger with a B-Elf, in goal was a futsal goalkeeper Christoffer Haagh. The day before the game, Kjær wanted to convince the B players not to play. The plan failed. The Danes showed a self-sacrificing fight and only lost 3-0. The players who jumped in were celebrated and the kicking kickers were punished with withdrawal of love. Kjær was accordingly pissed off. “How should we be grateful to someone who takes a stand against us and Danish football?” He is supposed to have said at the time.
Love comeback
This negative mood could be felt even immediately before the EM. But at least since the start of Denmark's European Championship and the dramatic scenes around Eriksen, everything has changed. The Danes are finally in love with their national team again.
In the German fan magazine 11 Freunde, the Danish football fan Gustav Knudsen, who was one of ten in Slovakia to support the B-Team at the time, said: “In 2018, the mood around the Danish national team was really down. For many, the players were just greedy millionaires who still wanted more money. However, this has been forgotten since the opening game for the European Championship. The players appear closer to the people and more down to earth. “
On Wednesday, the players and their fans celebrated the last chapter of this European Championship with the love comeback.
