Nordsjaelland – FC Copenhagen

Danish Superliga Round 8
Farum, September 16, 16:00 CET

Currently, the biggest derby in Danish football is, as a rule, a feast of attacking play. Nordsjaelland and FC Copenhagen have played four games since the beginning of the year - and at least three goals were scored in each of them.

The vice-champion will host the current champions and biggest rival in Round 8 of the Danish Superliga on Saturday. Nordsjaelland has two points less than the leaders in the table - and the opportunity to take over the top with a win. The home team will be under more pressure to avoid defeat, because FC Copenhagen, in case of victory, would already have a decent point difference.

In their last match in May, Nordsjaelland won 3:2 as hosts – and a few days before that, FC Copenhagen managed to celebrate 5:3! This is the best evidence of the extent to which these two teams strive to outplay each other and seek more goals in their duels. Both are synonymous with modern attacking football in Denmark. Such a game also brought them success on the European stage - FC Copenhagen will play in the Champions League group stage, and Nordsjaelland in the UEFA Conference League.

In the previous weeks, before the international break, both teams were obviously tired due to the constant rhythm of playing qualifications in European competitions. Because of this, Nordsjaelland only managed to win a 1:1 away draw against Lyngby (September 3). On the other hand, FC Copenhagen was unexpectedly stopped and defeated 3:1 in the match against Silkeborg (August 26).

Now, however, both teams are fresh and not burdened by injuries to important players for a very important game. Both are expected to play with variants of the 4-3-3 formation and to look for scoring chances from the start. FC Copenhagen has shown that they are particularly dangerous team when it comes to counterattacks, so goals are expected already in the first half.

In the last five matches played as a host, Nordsjaelland even scored at least three goals four times. Interestingly, when it comes to the games of these great rivals in Farum, at least four goals were scored in each of the last five! Nordsjaelland has three wins in a row as a host against FC Copenhagen, but they are far from being a clear favorite... In such a situation, it is easiest to predict at least three goals in the game, and both teams want to prove their attacking potential ahead of important European matches.

The fact that the Nigerian Amoo and the Senegalese Babacar will not play for FC Copenhagen is not a big problem for the guests. In the long term, the champions perform well without the two of them and have shown that they have a wide range of options in the rotation, so that it is not a deficit, both in domestic and in important European matches. Nordsjaelland has a full squad available the day before the match and promises a spectacular derby at home, without slowing down of the game tempo. Potentially, this is the most attractive derby this weekend in all of Europe.