Denmark on Pace to Advance in World Cup After Draw With Australia

Australia’s Mile Jedinak scored on a penalty kick to tie their match against Denmark on Thursday.

Denmark and Australia played a 1-1 draw in Samara on Thursday that kept Denmark on course to qualify and left Australia far short of that.

Denmark	1	Final	1	Australia
Christian Eriksen (7')	Group Stage			Mile Jedinak (38' PK)
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Denmark opened the scoring seven minutes in when Nicolai Jorgensen received the ball in the box and made a beautiful finesse chip to a charging Christian Eriksen.

He made no mistake and drove it home.

Australia equalized in the 38th through a penalty. Mathew Leckie headed a shot in the box. Yussuf Poulsen of Denmark jumped, but his arm blocked the shot. A quick check of the video confirmed the penalty. Certainly some Australian partisans would have seen it as inadvertent and inconsequential.

Mile Jedinak converted the penalty for Australia, and the score was tied.

It remained so through the second half, although both sides had some decent chances. Australia wound up with 14 shots and Denmark 10 in the open contest.

With 4 points, Denmark is in good position to qualify along with France from Group C. Australia must beat Peru in its last game, and even that may not be enough, depending on other results.

Both teams had their chances the rest of the way, each with some really clear ones, but neither could finish. Both teams had double-digit shots, and both put five on frame, but there would be no winner.

The Aussies still have a slim chance of moving on, while Denmark blows a chance to move on and leaves everything to be decided on the final match day. With the result, Denmark is up to four points in the group, while Australia has one. Denmark closes against France, while Australia faces Peru on Tuesday.