Euro 2020: Denmark beat Czech Republic to enter semis

Baku (Azerbaijan), July 3 (IANS): The 1992 Euro champions Denmark entered semi-finals of the European Championships -- Euro 2020 -- after beating Czech Republic 2-1 in the quarter-final here on Saturday night.

Thomas Delaney opened the scoring for the Danes in the 5th minute and Kasper Dolberg doubled it in the 42nd minute. Patrik Schick cut down the lead for the Czech side at the start of the second half, in the 49th minute, but the Danes held on to score a win.

Denmark had less possession -- 45 per cent to Czech Republic's 55 per cent and fewer shots at the goal -- 11 to 16. However, the Danes had more shots on target -- seven against Czech Republic's five.

The semi-final spot is a surprise for the northern Europeans who had overcome tough times in early stage of the tournament. Their star player Christian Eriksen almost died of a cardiac arrest on the pitch in the opening match against Finland. They also lost the first two matches -- 0-1 against Finland and 1-2 against Belgium.