The win means Australia qualify for the knockout stages of a World Cup for just the second time while Denmark are now winless in their last six World Cup matches. Australia will face the winners of Group C in the next round.
The first half was largely controlled by Denmark but still fairly quiet in both boxes. Ryan was forced into a stop after Souttar turned Maehle’s cross toward his own goal, but the goalkeeper reacted well to save with his feet. Australia did manage three shots on target in the first period, but all the attempts were tame and comfortable for Schmeichel to save. Australia started the second period well and were rewarded as Leckie put them in the lead in the 60th minute. He ran 40 yards before nutmegging Maehle on his on way to finding the bottom right corner. Denmark were poor in the second half and could not trouble Ryan at all as Australia win 1-0 to progress to the knockout rounds.
90' + 7' FULL TIME: AUSTRALIA 1-0 DENMARK
90' + 6' CHANCE! Eriksen sends in a deep corner to Cornelius, who can only find the roof of the net with his header!
90' + 4' Eriksen takes a corner, one which Schmeichel goes up for, but Ryan does well to catch the cross and stop the threat.
90' + 2' Souttar makes another great challenge to clear the ball after Eriksen tries to control it in the box.
90' There will be a minimum of six additional minutes.
A. Hrustić
M. Leckie
89' Goalscorer Leckie makes way for Hrustic for the final few minutes.
88' Souttar makes a great challenge in his own box to stop Dolberg from shooting, but the ball falls to Bah. The defender rushes his shot and misses the target.
86' Andersen is the first Denmark player to record 100+ passes in a single World Cup game. He has completed 79% of his passes so far.
84' Ryan picks the ball up after he beats Dolberg to it and takes his time before kicking it far up the pitch. Australia are doing well to see the minutes out at the moment.
J. Maclaren
M. Duke
82' Maclaren replaces Duke to lead the Australia frontline.
81' Australia are slowly retreating toward their own goal as they look to see this game through.
79' Denmark get forward and Bah tries to find a team-mate with a cross, but his attempt his wildly overhit to the disappointment of the Danish fans.
77' Leckie has scored his 14th goal for Australia in all competitions, five more than any other player in the Australia World Cup 2022 squad.
R. Skov
Yellow Card
75' Skov goes into the referee's book for pulling Baccus to the ground.
B. Wright
R. McGree
74' Wright replaces McGree to add more energy and pace to the Australia attack.
73' Skov finds Cornelius with a good cross, but the striker's header is off-target. He is then penalised for a foul on Rowles.
71' OFFSIDE! Denmark think they have a penalty but it is not given as Dolberg was offside in the build-up!
A. Cornelius
J. Mæhle
70' Cornelius replaces Maehle as Denmark get an extra attacker on the pitch.
R. Skov
A. Skov Olsen
69' Robert Skov replaces Skov Olsen in the Denmark attack.
68' Behich goes on a good run at the byline, beating three players on his way to the six-yard box. He tries to cut the ball back to a team-mate but Denmark crowd players around him and win a goal kick.
66' Australia are already starting to run the clock down at every opportunity they get. Denmark are trying to fight their way back into this game but are finding it difficult.
64' For the first time in this game, Australian fans are creating a good atmosphere inside the stadium as they look to help their team see this through.
62' Australia are gaining a lot of momentum from their goal and increasing the tempo of this game to unsettle Denmark.
R. McGree
Assist
60' McGree times his pass perfectly from his own half to put Leckie in a good position. Leckie then makes no mistake when beating Maehle and scoring past Schmeichel.
M. Leckie
Goal
60' GOALLL!! 1-0 AUSTRALIA! LECKIE! Leckie scores a wonderful solo goal to give Australia the lead! He sends Maehle the wrong way twice before putting the ball through his legs and into the bottom right corner.
M. Damsgaard
M. Jensen
59' Damsgaard comes on for Jensen to add of an attacking threat for Denmark.
K. Dolberg
M. Braithwaite
59' Dolberg replaces Braithwaite to lead the Denmark attack.
58' Eriksen tries to shoot from a very tight angle from a free-kick, and misses the target completely.
M. Degenek
Yellow Card
57' Degenek receives a yellow card for a clumsy challenge near his box.
56' Both attacks are struggling to find the necessary quality to find a goal. They are rushing their passes and touches and making it easy for the defenders.
54' Australia are not pressing when out of possession but doing well to close down the spaces in their own half and win the ball.
52' Jensen sends a decent cross into the box but it comes to nothing. Denmark are starting to find their feet in the game.
50' Australia are starting the second half well. They are attacking the Denmark box while stopping their opponents from getting close to their own goal.
48' CHANCE! Irvine has a good chance to score inside the box after McGree cuts the ball back to him, but his effort goes over the bar.
48' Mooy's second corner of the half is put into a good area but Andersen heads the ball away.
47' Behich shoots from distance after Mooy's corner is headed away. His shot goes behind for another corner.
46' Duke gets the second half underway for Australia.
A. Bah
R. Kristensen
46' Bah comes on for Kristensen at half-time for Denmark.
K. Baccus
C. Goodwin
46' Baccus replaces Goodwin on the left side of midfield for Australia.
Denmark do look more likely to score in this game, making almost twice as many passes in the final third as Australia. They are enjoying a lot of space in wide areas, but the final ball has been poor and Braithwaite is not receiving a lot of service.
The first half was largely controlled by Denmark but still fairly quiet in both boxes. Ryan was forced into a stop after Souttar turned Maehle’s cross toward his own goal, but the goalkeeper reacted well to save with his feet. Australia did manage three shots on target in the first period, but all the attempts were tame and comfortable for Schmeichel to save.
45' + 2' HALF-TIME: AUSTRALIA 0-0 DENMARK
45' + 2' Goodwin sends a good, low cross into the six-yard box but none of his team-mates can get to it and Christensen clears the danger.
45' There will be a minimum of two additional minutes.
43' Leckie does well to draw a foul from Eriksen and relieve some of the pressure on his goal.
41' Duke tries to catch Schmeichel out at the near post from 20 yards out, but the goalkeeper is quick to react and catch the shot.
39' McGree breaks forward down the right wing and sends a cross into the box. The cross is not good enough for any his team-mates to attack and Denmark come away with the ball.
37' Eriksen sends in a cross to the edge of the box but Irvine clears the ball away for Australia. A poor set-piece from Denmark.
35' Both Australia players and fans are unhappy with the referee after penalising Leckie for a foul close to the opposing box.
33' Braithwaite has created three chances in this game, more than any other player on either team. He has also completed 100 per cent of his passes so far.
31' Denmark are back in control of this game. The tempo is very slow at the moment as the European team patiently wait for an opening.
29' Eriksen picks the ball up just inside the box after Lindstrom's cross is defended well by Australia. The midfielder drags his shot wide of the left post for Denmark.
27' Australia are enjoying their first prolonged spell of possession in the game. They are trying to get the ball on the wings before crossing into Duke in the middle.
25' Jensen and Skov Olsen combine on the right side on the box before the latter takes a shot at goal. His attempt is tame and Ryan collets the ball.
23' Behich's yellow card after three minutes and 12 seconds was Australia's fastest ever card in a World Cup match, and the earliest one shown at the 2022 tournament so far.
21' McGree shoots on the half-volley from the edge of the box. It is straight at Schmeichel and the goalkeeper saves it comfortably.
19' SAVE! Ryan makes a good save with his feet to stop Denmark from taking the lead. Maehle cuts the ball back into the six-yard box and Souttar deflects the pass toward his own goal. Ryan is quick to react and keeps the ball out.
18' Eriksen hangs a cross up to the far post for Christensen to attack, but the defender heads the ball into the side netting. The linesman then raises his flag for offside.
16' Denmark are controlling possession well now and putting starting to put more pressure on Australia.
14' Skov Olsen creates some room for himself before shooting, but he is off balance and fires over the bar.
12' Eriksen takes an out-swinging corner toward the near post but Leckie heads the ball away for Australia.
10' Skov Olsen plays a low cross into the box and Lindstrom gets a shot away, but Australia block the shot and clear the danger.
8' Denmark's attackers are making a lot of runs in behind the Australia backline when they get into the final third, rather than trying to pass their way through the defence.
6' Both sides are being positive in possession. They are looking to get an early goal rather than sit back and look for an opportunity to counter-attack.
A. Behich
Yellow Card
4' Behich receives an early booking after pulling Skov Olsen to the ground.
3' McGree finds himself in space just outside the box and fires a shot toward goal, but his team-mate Duke gets in the way.
1' Braithwaite gets the game underway for Denmark!
The players are coming out of the tunnel and onto the pitch!
Nine of Australia's 15 World Cup goals have been scored by players aged 30 and over, including their two goals so far at this tournament (Goodwin and Duke). It's the highest percentage of goals netted by players aged 30+ in the competition's history (60 per cent, minimum two goals scored excluding own goals).
Graham Arnold makes one change to his starting lineup that beat Tunisia as Degenek comes in for Karacic at left-back. Hjulmand makes three changes as Jensen, Skov Olsen and Braithwaite replace Nelsson, Damsgaard, and Cornelius in the starting 11.
SUBS: Oliver Christensen, Frederik Ronnow, Victor Nelson, Simon Kjaer, Kasper Dolberg, Mikkel Damsgaard, Christian Norgaard, Jens Stryger Larsen, Daniel Wass, Jonas Wind, Yussuf Poulsen, Andreas Cornelius, Robert Skov, Alexander Bah.
Denmark (4-2-3-1): Kasper Schmeichel; Joakim Maehle, Andreas Christensen, Joachim Andersen, Rasmus Kristensen; Mathias Jensen, Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg; Jesper Lindstrom, Christian Eriksen, Andreas Skov Olsen; Martin Braithwaite.
SUBS: Andrew Redmayne, Daniel Vukovic, Nathaniel Atkinson, Fran Karacic, Marco Tilio, Bailey Wright, Jamie Maclaren, Ajdin Hrustic, Awer Mabil, Cameron Devlin, Thomas Deng, Garang Kuol, Joel, King, Jason Cummings, Keanu Baccus.
Australia (4-4-2): Mathew Ryan; Milos Degenek, Kye Rowles, Harry Souttar, Aziz Behich; Mathew Leckie, Aaron Mooy, Jackson Irvine, Craig Goodwin, Riley McGree, Mitchell Duke.
A goalless draw against Tunisia followed by a 2-1 defeat to France means that Denmark must both win and at least equal Tunisia’s result to progress to the next round of the competition. Defender Andreas Christensen is the only player to score for Denmark so far, with Kasper Hjulmand’s side only registering six shots on target across their two matches.
Australia moved up to second place in Group D after a 1-0 win over Tunisia in their last game. This means a win today against Denmark will guarantee them a spot in the knockout rounds, or at least a draw if Tunisia fail to beat France in the other game in the group. Mitchell Duke scored the only goal for Australia last time out, his first goal for club or country since the end of September.
Hello and welcome to the live commentary of the World Cup fixture between Australia and Denmark.
Commentary