Since their admittance into major international competition by UEFA in 2013, Gibraltar have become the whipping boys of the European game. The Islanders have won just four of their 39 international matches.
They have started their Euro 2020 qualifying campaign in a familiar fashion by losing all three games so far, while also failing to score. A home game against Denmark on Thursday night is their latest challenge.
In truth, their games in recent years have not been about winning, but more developing the national side. Development that the likes of San Marino, the Faroes Islands and Lichtenstein have strived for in recent years.
Their results in qualifying for the European Championships show that the home side has a long way to go to make an impact on the international game. In fact, since their first official internationals in 2013, Gibraltar have lost all 13 qualifiers they have played.
Even home advantage has done little to help the minnows, as they have failed to score in all their European Championship qualifiers on home soil while conceding at least twice in five of their six matches.
@GibraltarFA squad training hard in preparation for the upcoming game vs Denmark @DBUfodbold . Busy week ahead of the international double-header.... pic.twitter.com/CzyA41hz0a— Snapr Images (@sharpsnapper) September 2, 2019
@GibraltarFA squad training hard in preparation for the upcoming game vs Denmark @DBUfodbold . Busy week ahead of the international double-header.... pic.twitter.com/CzyA41hz0a
However, Denmark have not exactly made a sparkling start to their qualifying campaign. The Scandinavian visitors have drawn two and won one of their opening three qualifiers in a relatively open group.
The opening two results have left the visitors five points behind the Republic of Ireland, who top the group, although they played a game more than Age Hareide’s team.
The visitors have found wins hard to come by in qualifying for the European Championships, a 5-1 win over Georgia last time out ended a run of seven games without a victory for Denmark.
Denmark needs a victory to put themselves back in contention for top spot. Forebet predicts that they will record a win in a low-scoring encounter.