Schmeichel replaces Sorensen in Denmark squad

Posted Wednesday, May 30, 2012 by UEFA.com

Goalkeeper Thomas Sørensen has been forced to withdraw from Denmark's UEFA EURO 2012 squad due to a back injury, with Kasper Schmeichel taking his place in the 23-man party.

Schmeichel replaces Sorensen in Denmark squad
Thomas Sørensen will not be travelling to Poland and Ukraine

Denmark's first-choice goalkeeper, Thomas Sørensen, will miss UEFA EURO 2012 due to a back injury sustained during Saturday's friendly against Brazil, with coach Morten Olsen calling up Kasper Schmeichel as his replacement.

Sørensen was forced out of the action midway through the first half of the 3-1 loss to Brazil in Hamburg and Olsen has opted not to take any chances with the Stoke City FC player. "It was a tough decision to make, and it's a severe handicap for us," said the coach. "Sørensen is a fantastic and professional person to have in our squad, and his experience would have been just what we needed against some of the strongest teams in the world."

"I am deeply unhappy," added Sørensen, who has 101 caps. "I played most of the qualifiers and I was really looking forward to my fifth major tournament with the national team, but I fully understand that it's a big risk to take an injured goalkeeper even before the tournament has started, so I respect Morten's decision, even though it hurts."

Leicester City FC custodian Schmeichel, 25, now steps into the breach exactly 20 years after his father Peter played a major part in Denmark winning EURO '92 in Sweden. Olsen's side tackle Australia in their final warm-up game on Saturday before beginning their Group B campaign against the Netherlands on 9 June.

Denmark squad
Goalkeepers: Stephan Andersen (Évian Thonon Gaillard FC), Anders Lindegaard (Manchester United FC), Kasper Schmeichel (Leicester City FC).

Defenders: Lars Jacobsen (FC København), Daniel Wass (Évian Thonon Gaillard FC), Daniel Agger (Liverpool FC), Simon Kjær (AS Roma), Andreas Bjelland (FC Nordsjælland), Simon Poulsen (AZ Alkmaar), Jores Okore (FC Nordsjælland).

Midfielders: Christian Poulsen (Évian Thonon Gaillard FC), Jakob Poulsen (FC Midtjylland), William Kvist (1. FC Nürnberg), Niki Zimling (Club Brugge KV), Thomas Kahlenberg (Évian Thonon Gaillard FC), Christian Eriksen (AFC Ajax), Michael Silberbauer (BSC Young Boys), Lasse Schøne (NEC Nijmegen).

Forwards: Dennis Rommedahl (Brøndby IF), Nicklas Bendtner (Arsenal FC), Michael Krohn-Dehli (Brøndby IF), Tobias Mikkelsen (FC Nordsjælland), Nicklas Pedersen (FC Groningen).