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Armenia 0
Denmark 1 Agger (pen) 73'
Denmark started on the front foot against Armenia, holding possession and pushing the hosts back with an unusually adventurous team selection from Morten Olsen on a night they needed a result to keep their World Cup hopes alive. Young winger Martin Braithwaite continued to establish himself as the name to watch whenever Denmark entered the final third, while in defence it was another strong showing at the international level for Daniel Agger, who impressed along with 21-year-old left back Nicolai Boilesen.
Liverpool summer target Henrik Mkhitaryan and the rest of Armenia's midfield struggled to keep up with the energised Danes, but despite dominating possession and having far more scoring chances than Armenia, Denmark failed to take the lead their play deserved. Inevitably, Armenia began to grow into the match late in the first half, and for much of the second the two countries traded periods where one then the other would look most likely to break the deadlock.
Armenia had the best chance of the match 65 minutes in when a scrambled corner ricocheted around the box before bouncing up and off the crossbar, setting the stage for a sustained spell of dominance for the hosts. Then, Varazdat Haroyan gifted Denmark the game with a wild, reckless two-footed lunge in the box that handed the Danes a penalty and Haroyan his second yellow on the night. Daniel Agger calmly converted from the spot and, down to ten men and despite a dangerous late free kick, Armenia were done.
With the Czechs facing Italy later in the day and the Bulgarians facing off with trailers Malta, the win puts Denmark into second for at least a few hours and guarantees they will end the round no worse than a point off the pace as the Czechs, Bulgarians, Danes, and Armenians all fight to finish second to Italy with two games remaining. Denmark host Italy and Malta in their remaining two matches and will likely need at least four points if they hope to advance.
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