Kane strikes early, then England go on the back foot

England 1 Denmark 1

by Ben Reynolds

England missed the opportunity to secure their place in the Euro 2024 knockout stage as Group C winners, escaping with a draw from a lacklustre performance against Denmark in Frankfurt.

Gareth Southgate’s team could have topped the section with a win following the earlier draw between Slovenia and Serbia. Instead, they were fortunate to earn a point from a disorganised display.

Harry Kane scored in his fourth successive major tournament to give England an 18th-minute lead.

However, as has often been the case under Southgate’s management, this goal marked the beginning of a retreat, allowing Denmark to dominate the remainder of the match.

Sloppy passes gave Denmark the opportunity to get back into the game from a long range stunner from Morton Hjulmand.

Southgate’s side lacked intensity and frequently dropped deep, resulting in errant passing. Jude Bellingham, Sunday’s standout performer, was largely invisible, while Trent Alexander-Arnold struggled to find his rhythm in midfield.

Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg took the first shot on target within 30 seconds, but his low effort was easily collected by Jordan Pickford.

England responded with some positive early touches, particularly through Bukayo Saka, who earned a throw-in while hugging the touchline.

The first ten minutes saw both teams testing each other, with Phil Foden creating England’s first opportunity two minutes in.

After manoeuvring around the edge of the box, Foden’s shot sailed over the bar.

England broke the deadlock in the 18th minute when Kane capitalised on Victor Kristiansen’s error.

The Danish left-back hesitated, seemingly unaware he was under pressure, and was caught out by Kyle Walker’s pressure.

Walker produced a deflected pass that Kane converted from close range.

Denmark equalised in the 34th minute with a long-range strike from Hjulmand.

An errant pass from England landed at Hjulmand’s feet, and his shot from about 25 yards out beat Pickford, who reacted too late.

Just before half-time, Joachim Andersen’s off-balance header landed on the roof of the net, then Hojbjerg’s attempt from outside the box was comfortably saved by Pickford, keeping the score level at the break.

The second half commenced with England struggling to maintain possession and showing no signs of improvement.

Their play was disjointed, marked by lethargic, sideways passing that led nowhere. There was a lack of movement and runners, and England’s first chance of the half came from Saka, whose header dropped onto the side netting.

Alexander-Arnold was substituted for Conor Gallagher in England’s first change of the match.

Foden came close again in the 56th minute, finding space to unleash a powerful shot that hit the post, nearly catching Kasper Schmeichel off guard.

Denmark made their first substitution, bringing on Yussuf Poulsen for Manchester United’s Rasmus Hojlund. England responded with a triple substitution in the 68th minute: Ollie Watkins replaced Kane, Eberechi Eze came on for Saka, and Jarrod Bowen took Foden’s place.

Kane, who had been dropping too deep and condensing play, was replaced by Watkins.

The Aston Villa man had an early opportunity, breaking through Denmark’s defence, but Schmeichel anticipated the danger and made the save.

Marc Guehi’s mistake allowed Alexander Bah to break free with options in the box. However, Guehi quickly recovered and managed to rectify his error before Bah could capitalise.

Five minutes before full-time, Bellingham lost possession, leading to another attempt by Hojbjerg, which went wide.

The match ended in a 1-1 draw, leaving England with four points from two games and plenty of room for improvement as they head to Cologne to face Slovenia.