Rasmus Hojlund and Christian Eriksen struggle as Denmark exit Euro 2024

Germany defeated Denmark 2-0 in the round of 16, knocking Denmark out of Euro 2024 before Christian Eriksen and Rasmus Hojlund could find their stride.

Denmark looked determined after a fiercely contested first half, holding Germany’s aggressive team from scoring a goal even though the momentum was mostly in the hosts’ favor.

Just five minutes after the break, it appeared as if the Danes found an unlikely lead against the run of play. Eriksen took a sublime free kick, swinging the ball to Jannik Vestergaard who knocked the ball to the other end of the penalty box. While Joachim Andersen managed to put the ball in the net, the goal was ruled offside by VAR.

This moment was a testament to the large involvement that Eriksen had in his team’s attacking build-ups, making three key passes in total. Aside from such moments, Eriksen struggled to maintain accuracy, completing just 70% of his passes (35/50), one of six crosses, and two of three long balls.

Eriksen’s physical performance was lacking; he was dispossessed 22 times, more than any other player on either team, and lost his lone duel of the game.

In the physical arena, Hojlund did significantly better but was still unimpressive, winning two of the four aerial challenges and four of the nine ground duels. He also misplaced the item eleven times in a row.

The attacker completed an incredible 11 of 14 passes in just 30 touches. He was obviously unable to attempt any long balls or crosses, which makes sense given his position as a target man.

Hojlund enjoyed his fair share of goalscoring opportunities. While he took four shots in total, he proved largely wasteful.

With two shots on target, Hojlund had one big chance that he ultimately missed.

While able to break through the German defence after getting on the end of a cross, Hojlund was one-on-one with the keeper. Although he was standing slightly left of the goalposts, he failed to utilise the generous amount of space he had, shooting directly at the keeper and making his job as easy as possible.

Although he was able to complete one tackle, defending was hardly a priority for Denmark’s target man, especially once he was unable to produce any true goal threat.

Sadly, it was a night to forget for both Eriksen and Hojlund, both of whom produced a mixed-bag performance. Hopefully, they will focus on understanding and fixing their errors as they prepare to return to Manchester United ahead of the new season.