Peru made a bright start, bursting forward from the first whistle, rattling Denmark for the first 15 minutes.

When VAR awarded Peru a penalty on the stroke of half-time, it looked like they were set to take the lead but Christian Cueva sent the ball well over the bar.

Denmark went one up when Christian Eriksen took full advantage of a rare bit of space to set Poulsen up in front of goal.

Peru responded immediately forcing Denmark goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel into a spectacular left-handed save.

They kept up this pressure for the rest of the second half and were extremely unlucky to not equalise.  

Denmark

Kasper Schmeichel- 8

Despite facing a penalty Schmeichel wasn’t truly tested in the first half. This changed immediately after Denmark took the lead as Peru unleashed an offensive frenzy. An amazing left-handed save and clearance off the line were instrumental in keeping Denmark ahead. His six saves are the most of the World Cup so far.

Simon Kjaer- 6

Top class players don’t necessarily need to stand out to be effective for their team. The Danish captain was always where he needed to be in defence and saw his men through sustained periods of pressure.

Andreas Christensen- 5

Christensen had his hands full with the likes of Carillo but managed to get a vital touch on the ball when it was most needed.

William Kvist- 5

It is always hard to see a player stretchered off the field and Kvist was showing promise before he had to be replaced due to a suspected rib injury.

Henrik Dalsgaard- 6.5

Didn’t shine individually but was solid and disciplined in defence.  

Christian Eriksen- 6

Peru did extremely well to keep Eriksen on the periphery for most of the game. However, like most world class players it only took one moment for him to have an impact, laying the ball off for Poulsen’s goal.