Denmark were held to a draw by Tunisia in their World Cup opener in a raucous atmosphere at the Education City Stadium in Al Rayyan.
Despite fielding many Premier League regulars, the much-fancied Danes were given a tough workout in Group D.
Both sides had goals ruled out for offside, while Denmark’s Andreas Cornelius somehow missed from a yard.
There was 95th-minute drama when referee Cesar Ramos checked the pitchside monitor over a potential Denmark penalty for handball, only to stick with his original decision.
One of the pre-tournament favourites, Denmark will need to find some form if they are to qualify from a tricky-looking group.
Last summer, Denmark rode a crest of emotion to the Euro 2020 semi-finals after midfielder Christian Eriksen had suffered a cardiac arrest in their opening match, and confidence was high going into this tournament in Qatar, with nine wins out of 10 in World Cup qualifying.
However, Tunisia were unfazed by reputation and, perhaps inspired by Saudi Arabia’s stunning win over Argentina and a vociferous crowd acclaiming every tackle, they made it uncomfortable for the Danes.
Denmark almost got away with a disjointed display when the video assistant referee suggested a penalty check after the ball had hit Yassine Merriah’s arm – but the referee decided his on-pitch call had been correct.
Indeed, Ramos was showing great consistency, having earlier deemed that a similar incident at the other end against Andreas Christensen was not a penalty either.
At Euro 2020, Denmark thrived on the tag of underdogs. Badged as favourites here, this was a difficult 90 minutes and they will need to go through the gears to progress in this tournament.
With holders France up next on Saturday (16:00 GMT kick-off), it will only get harder for Kasper Hjulmund’s side.
Player of the match
EriksenChristian Eriksen
Line-ups
Denmark
Formation 3-5-2
- 1Schmeichel
- 2Andersen
- 4KjaerSubstituted forJensenat 65′minutesBooked at 78mins
- 6Christensen
- 13KristensenBooked at 24mins
- 23Højbjerg
- 8DelaneySubstituted forDamsgaardat 45+1′minutes
- 10Eriksen
- 5Maehle
- 11Skov OlsenSubstituted forLindstrømat 65′minutes
- 12DolbergSubstituted forCorneliusat 65′minutes
Substitutes
- 3Nelsson
- 7Jensen
- 9Braithwaite
- 14Damsgaard
- 15Nørgaard
- 16Christensen
- 17Stryger Larsen
- 18Wass
- 19Wind
- 20Poulsen
- 21Cornelius
- 22Rønnow
- 24Skov
- 25Lindstrøm
- 26Bah
Tunisia
Formation 3-4-2-1
- 16Dahmen
- 6Bronn
- 4Meriah
- 3Talbi
- 20DrägerSubstituted forKechridaat 88′minutes
- 17Skhiri
- 14LaïdouniSubstituted forSassiat 88′minutes
- 24Abdi
- 25Ben SlimaneSubstituted forSlitiat 67′minutes
- 7MsakniSubstituted forMejbriat 80′minutes
- 9JebaliSubstituted forKhenissiat 80′minutesBooked at 86mins
Substitutes
- 1Mathlouthi
- 2Ifa
- 5Ghandri
- 8Mejbri
- 10Khazri
- 11Khenissi
- 12Maâloul
- 13Sassi
- 15Ben Romdhane
- 18Chaalali
- 19Jaziri
- 21Kechrida
- 22Ben Saïd
- 23Sliti
- 26Hassen
- Referee:
- César Arturo Ramos Palazuelos
- Attendance:
- 42,925
Live Text
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Match ends, Denmark 0, Tunisia 0.
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Second Half ends, Denmark 0, Tunisia 0.
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Foul by Mikkel Damsgaard (Denmark).
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Ellyes Skhiri (Tunisia) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
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Joachim Andersen (Denmark) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
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Foul by Taha Yassine Khenissi (Tunisia).
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Attempt saved. Andreas Cornelius (Denmark) header from the centre of the box is saved in the top right corner. Assisted by Christian Eriksen with a cross.
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Corner, Denmark. Conceded by Wajdi Kechrida.
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VAR Decision: No Penalty Denmark.
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Foul by Mathias Jensen (Denmark).
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Taha Yassine Khenissi (Tunisia) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
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Corner, Denmark. Conceded by Aymen Dahmen.
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Attempt blocked. Joakim Maehle (Denmark) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked. Assisted by Andreas Cornelius.
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Attempt saved. Andreas Cornelius (Denmark) header from the centre of the box is saved in the top centre of the goal. Assisted by Mathias Jensen.
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Corner, Denmark. Conceded by Wajdi Kechrida.
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Substitution, Tunisia. Ferjani Sassi replaces Aïssa Laïdouni.
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Substitution, Tunisia. Wajdi Kechrida replaces Mohamed Dräger.
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Andreas Cornelius (Denmark) wins a free kick on the left wing.
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Foul by Mohamed Dräger (Tunisia).
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Taha Yassine Khenissi (Tunisia) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
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