Denmark march to EURO 2020 semifinals

ANKARA

Denmark on Saturday beat Czech Republic 2-1 in a UEFA EURO 2020 quarterfinal match to reserve their place in next week's semifinals.

Danish team made a flying start to the match at Baku Olympic Stadium as Denmark midfielder Thomas Delaney, who was unmarked in the area, scored a header from a corner kick in the fifth minute to give a 1-0 lead to his team.

Denmark doubled the lead in the 42nd minute as forward Kasper Dolberg tapped the ball into the Czech net after Joakim Maehle's curling cross with the outside of his right foot from the left flank, a classy assist.

The Danish team led the first half 2-0.

Czech forward Patrik Schick narrowed the gap in the 49th minute, finishing with a right-footed strike in the box after Vladimir Coufal's cross.

Following the 2-1 win, Denmark will face Ukraine or England in the semifinal on Wednesday in London.

Schick scored five goals for his nation in the EURO 2020 to level with Portuguese superstar Cristiano Ronaldo.

Czech Republic's EURO 2020 journey ended on Saturday. But Portugal have already been eliminated from the tournament.

Friendly gesture for Danish midfielder Eriksen

Before the kick off on Saturday's game, Czech captain Tomas Soucek handed an autographed Czech Republic jersey to Danish skipper Simon Kjaer to wish Danish midfielder Christian Eriksen a speedy recovery.

In addition, a giant Eriksen shirt was displayed on the pitch, a kind and morale boosting gesture for the Danish player.

Eriksen, 29, suffered a cardiac arrest during a EURO 2020 Group B game against Finland at Parken Stadium, Copenhagen on June 12. He was rushed to a Danish hospital after urgent medical interventions on the pitch.

Then Eriksen underwent a successful operation and was discharged from hospital on June 18.​​​​​​​