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| Nyhavn, Copenhagen |
A
few weeks ago I went on a city break to Copenhagen for the weekend. Being under
eighteen (and travelling with my dad) meant that, sadly, I was unable to
experience the Danish nightlife. So what did I do instead? I spent my Saturday
evening at Parken, Denmark’s national stadium, watching FC København versus FC
Nordsjælland.
Parken
is home to FC København and the Danish National Team (also known as the
Landsholdet). A week before my arrival on Danish soil, Denmark played one of
their World Cup qualifiers at the stadium and, despite Denmark being dominant against
the Czech Republic, the match ended in a 0 – 0 draw.
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| Parken, Denmark's national stadium |
Thankfully,
the next week’s Superligæn match provided much more excitement, although
because this match featured last season’s winners (Nordsjælland) and the regular
winners of the league (FCK), I expected it to be quite a close call. Despite
sitting in the “neutral” section of the stadium, the atmosphere was still good although,
admittedly, it was dominated by København fans. However, the best chants and
cheers definitely came from ‘Sektion 12’, or the Lower B stand, which was
clearly made up of the most passionate FCK fans.
København
dominated in the 45 minutes, but the half remained goalless until a fantastic
strike from Michael Parkhurst at the start of added time gave FCN the lead.
Disappointing, as by now I’d decided to adopt FCK as a team that I’d support
(or at least one I’d always have a soft spot for – I even bought a scarf from
the club shop).
Despite
this, all was not lost. Super-sub Igor Vetokele netted one for FCK from Kris
Stadsgaard’s corner, and around 20 minutes later Andreas Cornelius, a 19 year
old recently called up for the Danish National Team, made it 2 – 1 to the home
team. Needless to say, at this point the atmosphere was absolutely fantastic.
The
game really won me over to Danish football, as well as the holiday itself
making me love Denmark. If, or hopefully when, I visit for a second time,
watching FC København play again is a definite must.
