Denmark All-time 23 member team

Denmark 1992 European Champion

Before the 1978, football in Denmark remained an amateur sport.  They had done well at the Olympics winning medals at 1908,1912, 1948 and 1960. They also took a 4th place at the 1964 European Championship, but their run was helped by playing easy opponents until the semifinal.  Then, in the 1980's, Danish football finally arrived.  Nicknamed "Danish Dynamite", Denmark was an explosive team.  At the Euro 1984 Finals, they destroyed Yugoslavia 5-0 before losing to Spain in the semifinal.  Two years later, they went to Mexico 1986 with a team led by Preben Elkjaer and Golden Boy Michael Laudrup.  They swept their group matches by thrashing Uruguay 6-1 and a notable 2-1 win against West Germany.  Denmark was the most exciting team up to that point of the tournament and became the dark horse.  However, at the round of 16, Denmark was again beaten by Spain in which Emilio Butragueño scored 4 goals.  

After the WC Finals in 1986, Denmark entered a period of poor results.  That included failing to qualify for Euro 1992.  However, Yugoslavia was banned because of the war back home.  Denmark was a last minute replacement for the Euro 1992 Finals in Sweden.  They were ill-prepared for the tournament.  Their best player Michael Laudrup also refused to play for the team because of disagreement with coach Richard Møller Nielsen.  However, in Sweden, Denmark beat the last three European champion: France, Holland and Germany and won the tournament with Peter Schmeichel as the star.  

Denmark would also qualify for the WC in 1998 and 2002, and the European Championship in 1996, 2000, 2004 and 2012, but they only managed to reach the quarterfinal in 1998 and 2004.

If there were an All-Time World Cup, this would be the 23 players I would bring to the tournament.

Team
GK: Peter Schmeichel 
He was regarded as one of the greatest keeper of all-time. He was voted the "World's Best Goalkeeper" in 1992 and 1993. He is best remembered for his most successful years at Manchester United, whom he captained to the 1999 UEFA Champions League to complete the Treble, and for winning UEFA Euro 1992 with Denmark.  

Peter Schmeichel 

GK: Henry From
He won a silver medal at the 1960 Summer Olympics.  he was capped 31 times.

GK: Thomas Sørensen
He played 101 matches for his country. He was part of Denmark's 2002 FIFA World Cup, UEFA Euro 2004, and 2010 FIFA World Cup squads. He has played 16 seasons in the Premiership.

RB: Thomas Helveg
The most prominent period of his career was five years with  AC Milan, with whom he won the 1999 Serie A championship and 2003 UEFA Champions League tournament. He was named 1994 Danish Player of the Year.  He has participated in the 1996, 2000 and 2004 European Championship and the 1998 and 2002 FIFA World Cup tournaments.

RB: Johnny Hansen  
He most notably played six years for Bayern Munich, where he won three European Cups and three Bundesliga. He was named 1967 Danish Player of the Year. 

CB: Daniel Agger
He earned over 60 caps and played for Denmark at the 2010 FIFA World Cup and UEFA Euro 2012.  He most notably played for Liverpool, where he was a Champions' league runner-up. He was named 1967 Danish Player of the Year in 2007 and 2012.

CB: Morten Olsen 
He was one of the greatest Danish players ever.  He was the captain of Denmark during its Golden era in the mid-1980's.  He was named Danish Player of the Year in1983 and 1986. He won the 1983 UEFA Cup with Anderlecht.

Morten Olsen 

SW/CB: Per Røntved

He was at one point the cap record for Denmark before Morten Olsen broke it.  He was named 1972 Danish Player of the Year.
 

CB: Ivan Nielsen
He was most prominently played professionally for Dutch clubs Feyenoord Rotterdam and PSV Eindhoven, winning the European Cup with PSV. He was capped 51 times and represented Denmark at 1986 World Cup and two European Championship tournaments.

LB: Bent Hansen
He won a silver medal at the 1960 Summer Olympics.
He was at one point the cap record for Denmark and the first player to break the 50 caps barrier.

LB: Jan Heintze
He played with PSV Eindhoven, winning the European Cup in 1988. He played 86 matches for Denmark, but missed the 1992 European Chamouionship because of an injury.

DM: Nils Middelboe 
 He represented the Denmark at the 1908, 1912 and 1920 Summer Olympics, winning silver medals in 1908 and 1912. He was the first ever goalscorer for the Danish national football team, when he scored in Denmark's debut game at the 1908 Summer Olympics. In 1913, he moved abroad to play for Chelsea, and became the first foreign player to ever represent the club.

CM: Soren Lerby
He was most prominently played professionally for Dutch clubs Ajax and PSV Eindhoven, winning five Eredivisie championships with Ajax and the 1988 European Cup with PSV.  He was a member of the 1986 World Cup team that dazzled the world.

Lerby

CM: Jan Molby
He won 33 caps for Denmark from 1982 to 1990, scoring two goals.He was a member of  the "Dynamite" Denmark which lit up the 1984 European Championship and 1986 World Cup.  He notably spent twelve years playing in England with Liverpool.
 
RW/AM/SS: Brian Laudrup
He won the Danish Footballer of the Year award a record four times.  He played 82 games and scored 21 goals for Denmark, and was a key player of the Danish teams who won the Euro 1992 and 1995 Confederations cup.

Brian Laudrup

LW: Karl Aage Praest 
He won a bronze medal at the 1948 Summer Olympics.  His international career was limited to his status as a professional player after he joined Juventus.  He won the 1949-50 and 1951-52 Serie A championships.

AM/SS: Jon Dahl Tomasson 
He is best remembered for his most successful years at  AC Milan.  He won the 2003 UEFA Champions League and reached the final in 2005. He was the Danish Player of the Year award in both 2002 and 2004.

AM/FW: Michael Laudrup 
He was the Golden Boy of the "Dynamite" Denmark at the WC in 1986.  He is regarded as Denmark's greatest offensive players.  In 1999, he was voted the Best Foreign Player in Spanish Football over the preceding 25-year period.  He won five straight La Liga titles 4 with Barcelona and then, one more with Real Madrid.

Michael Laudrup 

 FW: Henning Jensen
At Mönchengladbach, he played alongside fellow Danish national team player Allan Simonsen in the attack. He won the 1972–73 DFB-Pokal, 1974–75 UEFA Cup, and two Bundesliga championships in his four years at the club. He earned a big move to Real Madrid in 1976.
 
ST: Preben Elkjaer Larsen
He was a star of the "Dynamite" Denmark at the WC in 1986, winning the Bronze Ball award. In 1985, he was akey player as Hellas Verona won its first ever scudetti, in an era where Serie A was considered the most competiative in the world and Verona was a small club.

RW/SS/ST: Allan Simonsen
He most prominently played for Borussia Mönchengladbach, winning the 1975 and 1979 UEFA Cups, as well as for Barcelona, winning the 1982 Cup Winners' Cup.  He is the only footballer to have scored in the European Cup, UEFA Cup, and Cup Winners' Cup finals. Simonsen was named 1977 European Footballer of the Year.  he was a part of Denmark's Euro 1983 team, but was injured after the first game.  By 1986, he was an aging player and played in one match in the WC Finals.

Allan Simonsen

ST: Pauli Jorgensen 
 In 1971, Pauli Jørgensen was honoured as the Danish football player who had meant the most for the game of football in Denmark during the first 50 years of the Danish Football Association. In 1939, he set a record 47 international games played for Denmark. The record stood for 22 years.


ST: Harald Nielsen
He is best remembered for his years at Bologna during the 1960's.  He was the Serie A top-scorer in 1961 where Bologna won the league title.  He won a silver medal at the 1960 Summer Olympics and finished as the top scorer of the Games.  However, Denmark banned professionals from playing for its national team.  He played his last match for Denmark as a 19 years old.


Honorable Mention
Ebbe Sand, Frank Arnesen, Troels Rasmussen, Jasper Olsen, Flemming Povlsen.

Squad Explanation

• I included many players from the "Dynamite" Denmark of the 1980's.  However, I did not have space for Troels Rasmussen.
•  Only two members of the 1992 team was selected for this squad.  Instead, I took a lot of older players who were considered pioneers in Denmark.  
• Frank Arnesen is the biggest name missing on my team.

Starting lineup
Formation I: 3-5-2  
The 3-5-2 formation is based upon the one used by the "Dynamite" Denmark and Sepp Piontek in 1986.

• Morten Olsen played as the libero as he did in 1986. Lerby also stayed in the same position.
• Praest would play Jesper Olsen's role on the left.  
• Klaus Berggreen was liked a shutter in 1986 who also helped the defense.  Brian Laudrup was more offensive-minded.  
• Michael Laudrup played upfront in 1986 . For this team, I used him as a playmaker, a position he mastered in his career.
• Simonsen passed his prime in 1986.  So he did not play much.  But for this team, he is the best forward in Denmak's history.  He must start upfront.