EURO 2020: Belgium beat Denmark 2-1 to qualify for round of 16

Belgium has officially cruised to round of 16 in European Championship after a 2-1 victory over Denmark on Thursday in a game marked by tributes to Christian Eriksen.

Denmark had the perfect start when midfielder Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg intercepted the ball to feed an unmarked Yussuf Poulsen, who arrowed a right-footed shot into the bottom corner with 99 seconds on the clock. However, Belgium leveled the score line in the second half through Thorgan Hazard.

Kevin De Bruyne came on after halftime for his first appearance since sustaining a facial fracture in the Champions League final and squared the ball for Thorgan Hazard to equalize in the 55th minute.

De Bruyne then broke Danish hearts when he gave Belgium the lead in the 70th minute, receiving the ball at the edge of the box from a slick passing move and firing a left-footed shot that beat goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel.

Belgium have a maximum six points from two games, while Denmark are bottom of the group after two losses. Russia and Finland have three points each after two games.

Maneno Chimulala

I am a journalist, educator, and activist with passion for telling stories about social justice, sports and political issues. I graduated from Mzuzu University. I started my career at the Maravi Post online publication in 2012 as an intern while in college. Upon graduating from Mzuzu University I was offered a job as Sports Reporter because of my background as a goalkeeper and rose to the position of sub editor. I also had a short stint with Nyasatimes, Malawi Punch and Malawi Digest. Over the past seven years, I have worked intimately with rural organizations and communities in Malawi on human rights, girl child education and grassroots development projects. With an academic background in education, I also volunteer as male champion for girls’ education under Girls Empowerment Networks (GENET) in Malawi’s South West Education Division (SWED).