Road Trip #4: How Three Danish Clubs Restored My Faith In Modern Football

Day 1.

Modern football. It’s brilliant, intoxicating and awful, in equal measure. And not for the first time in 30+ years of being deeply ingrained in Premier League football, I was beginning to feel jaded. Not necessarily with my team, although it has its issues, but more with the whole circus of it. From needing three different subscriptions to watch games, to gambling sponsors ramming their offers down your throat at every opportunity, to clubs letting their moral compass take a back seat to sporting ambition, it has become a pretty grim spectacle. So I did what any rational person would do in that situation: hopped on a flight to Denmark in search of some football that didn’t make me feel like all hope was lost.

These trips have become more than just a chance for a weekend away with some football, they help get me through the year. An opportunity to discover new things, see friends and scratch a footballing itch that is impossible when sat behind a screen, which is how most of my Danish football is consumed.

So I packed my bag and headed for Copenhagen. Meeting me there was Rich, a friend from London who just happens to be, amongst other things, an incredible filmmaker. Despite having next to no interest in football he’d told me some time ago that next time I did a trip he’d tag along to film, determined to get to the bottom of just why I’m so obsessed with Danish football. True to his word he was there when I arrived, recording equipment ready as we headed to catch the S-Train to Farum for the first match of the trip.

This sleepy, picturesque town, mostly populated by modern bungalows is home to one of Europe’s most progressive clubs. FC Nordsjælland (FCN) makes headlines across the world by virtue of its connection to Right To Dream (RTD), an academy which was founded in Ghana by Tom Vernon and, in 2016, bought FCN, the first time a European club had been owned by an African academy. I could write a whole article (and I probably will) about what a remarkable operation RTD is, with 95% of its graduates either becoming pro footballers or receiving college scholarships in the US. The squad, the youngest of any top flight club in Europe, is a mixture mostly of Scandinavian and African talent, with a chemistry forged long before first-team football when the Ghanaian & Danish academies join forces to create a single RTD team when the players reach 16. Right To Dream is often lazily referred to in the media as a ‘talent factory’ - I always take issue with the terminology. Yes it produces incredibly talented footballers, but it’s a place that nurtures and develops the people that come through its doors, an approach as far from a factory as you will find in football.

Champions League pennants from FC Nordsjælland’s 2012-13 campaign

One of the amazing things I’ve discovered on my own personal journey through Danish football is the people you meet along the way. Casper De Linde is a huge FC Nordsjælland fan, having moved to Farum as a kid, and over the years we’ve got to know each other, first through Twitter, then through my podcast, which he has guested on multiple times, but we hadn’t met in person, at least until now. Rich and I pulled up to the only bar in Farum that was open - Farum Kro - and poked our head inside. No sign of Casper, but the group sitting outside were suspicious of us. “Are you here to support FCSB?” they asked slightly menacingly, assuming we were part of the visiting support for the evening’s Conference League clash. I told them we were from England, and here to see the Ibrahim Osman show, (I figured I better pick a player a visiting fan would be unlikely to have clocked!). Their reactions immediately changed and we were welcomed inside and before long Casper bounded through the door wearing a 2011-12 FCN shirt, with ‘Danske Mestre’ (‘Danish Champions’) printed on the back in gold, FCN’s one and only league title to date. It was just like seeing an old friend and we talked about the excitement of an FCN European campaign, as we sat beneath a row of pennants from the club’s Champions League campaign of 2012-13.

As we wandered to the stadium, Casper told us about the league title win and how the club had both rebranded and rebuilt following a scandal in the early 2000s involving a corrupt mayor abusing public funds. It is said that local taxes in the area are apparently still higher than neighbouring locales, apparently due to the fact the money still hasn’t been paid back, something that irritates residents who aren’t supporters of the club.

With Casper outside Right To Dream Park

Inconspicuous amongst the quiet residential streets is Right To Dream Park - a modern stadium in all senses of the word - from an artificial surface, to a bowl-style stand arrangement, to the fact that the structure houses its own hotel (now closed to the public owing to the fact it is fully occupied by FCN players) and a large supporters bar, decked out with framed shirts & pool tables. It was here where we started to soak up the atmosphere, joined by Christian Wolny, a Danish football O.G. who has been a constant source of knowledge & support to me through this endeavour and who is now Strategic Advisor at Right To Dream. I was just about to ask for a lineup prediction when into the bar strolled FC Nordsjælland Technical Director Alex Riget. It’s times like this when I wish my Danish was more proficient, because in a 10 minute talk he not only ran through the starting lineup, but also the precise tactical instructions the players had been given for the match, down to pressing patterns and marking assignments. For someone like me who has grown up on Premier League football, where the club and the fans are kept as far apart as possible, this was an incredible display of togetherness and one which fosters a tight bond between the club and the fans. A number of fans put their hands up to ask questions, which were answered honestly and without the cliched phrasing we’ve come to expect in the Premier League.

Alexander Riget briefs the fans ahead of kick-off in the supporters bar

Johannes Thorup, FCN’s manager, told me afterwards that one of the results of doing this is a fanbase who are far more knowledgeable about the technical aspects of the game than is typical.

“Without being arrogant, we have some fans that really appreciate football in a certain way. If we lose the questions I get are not about the result but the style of play. I think it’s quite a special thing to do to integrate so closely with the fans so they have some knowledge of what we do and how we do it.”

Certainly from what I heard, you’re more likely to hear an FCN fan shouting for a fullback to invert to create an overload than you are to hear them screaming ‘get it in the mixer!’

With kick-off looming we took our seats and watched as the astroturf was given a drenching by the automatic sprinkler system. Having a slick surface enables the kind of fast-paced technical football that FCN have become known for and seeing the ball ping off the surface you can see why home advantage is such a thing in Farum. I also discovered that water isn’t wasted during this process - instead it drains off the pitch into tanks to be reused. It feels like small details like this are everywhere in the FCN story if you scratch beneath the surface.

An impossibly photogenic sky above Right To Dream Park

On the pitch, the visitors did not come to park the bus, looking to attack on the counter and carving out a few dangerous opportunities early doors. Kian Hansen was at his best, demonstrating his value with a superb block to prevent a goalbound shot troubling Andreas Hansen. The towering keeper was at full stretch to tip a curled shot from outside the area around the post and it felt like things could get tricky for FCN if they didn’t find a way to alleviate some of the pressure. But as the half wore on, momentum began to swing and a penalty late in the half gave Marcus Ingvartsen the opportunity to convert from the spot, which he did with aplomb.

The electric Ernest Numah was withdrawn at half time, having been kicked to pieces all game and picked up a yellow just before the break. “I was a little bit worried about that yellow card and I could also see that they were quite tough on him. We could see the same would happen in the second half so we decided to play with no risk for him,” FCN manager Johannes Thorup would tell me afterwards.

It would prove to be his last involvement at FC Nordsjælland - a few days later he would sign for Olympic Lyonnais in France for not only a Superliga record sale of €25m but a record for the buying club too. Fees of this size were unheard of a few seasons go and FC Nordsjælland have been the ones leading the new frontier of Superliga clubs selling direct to top teams, with Mohammed Kudus (Ajax, then West Ham), Kamaldeen Sulemana (Rennes, then Southampton) and Simon Adingra (Brighton) - all RTD graduates - moving for huge fees in recent years. The club operates on a not-for-dividend basis, almost unheard of in the football world, meaning sales of this magnitude stand to benefit the academies and infrastructure in a way they simply wouldn’t at a club who also needs to service its shareholders in the form of dividend payouts.

The second half began and it was clear that Thorup had managed to come up with a plan to shift the momentum towards the home side. A second yellow card for former Spurs defender Vlad Chiriches all but ended the contest, until a second from Marcus Ingvartsen, a superb left footed drive from the edge of the box, put it beyond any doubt.

Leaving my seat in the press box I walked across the pitch headed for the mixed zone but stopped briefly half way to watch the FCN players sit down in front of the noisiest pocket of fans behind the goal, before being summoned to their feet to celebrate. After speaking to returning talisman Marcus Ingvartsen on everything from playing on artificial turf “better than expected - I was a little curious about how my body would adapt to it but it’s been great and the way we play it’s a huge advantage,” to what the club had to say to him to persuade him to leave the Bundesliga aged only 27, “the ambitions for the club, trying to win the league and play in the Conference League but also working with the younger guys and giving something to them. All in all it’s a different level to the club I knew from before.”

Supporters and players saluting eachother after the final whistle.

I also got the chance to speak to manager Johannes Thorup. At 34, he’s only a few weeks older than club captain Kian Hansen, but has an intensity & football brain way beyond his years. I asked him about pre-season and whether it held the keys to the team’s strong start to the campaign.

“If I had to highlight one thing I’d say we do everything we can in pre-season to find European opponents on a high level. We faced Olympiakos and RB Salzburg in two games, which is of course the first step for us. Finding opposition like that prepares us for nights like this.”

We talked about the approach of the visitors - “more or less as we expected, quite individual style where they try to set up their wingers as much as possible” - and the arrival some more experienced heads in Jeppe Tverskov and Marcus Ingvartsen - “they have so many qualities off the pitch and we have so many young players who can learn from them. But also on the pitch we need players like them who have deep experience in Europe & the Danish league.”

In conversation with FCN manager Johannes Thorup

A lot of what I do is trying to persuade people outside of Scandinavia to pay more attention to the Danish league. I asked Johannes for some help in this regard - how would he sell the league to outsiders?

“It’s a league with more and more young guys, many who then get seen in the biggest leagues in the years after. If you want to see the future stars, you just need to watch the Danish Superliga. I also like that there are so many different styles of play, if you look at the 12 teams there are no two that are the same.”

After the game, Rich and I jumped in a car with Christian, headed for Farum Kro again to cap the night with some beers with Casper and co. Christian dropped us at the door and drove off into the night, just as we discovered that not only was Farum Kro closed, but Casper was back at the stadium bar. So we turned around and walked back through the rain, with the party at the supporters bar still in full swing. The same guys who had mistaken us for FCSB fans were standing at the door and this time greeted us warmly “Hey! The English guys!” It might only be a qualifier, but these European nights in Farum are not taken for granted and the prospect of a group stage campaign is one fans are extremely excited for. I dare say the style of football the team play will make for some challenging encounters for whoever happens to draw them in the Conference League.

Day 2.

The next day blissful sunshine filled Copenhagen and with a whole day ahead of us until the evening’s match, we decided to head back to Right To Dream Park. One of the perks of playing on artificial turf is that you can train on the same pitch you play on, so being there to see a training session was the order of the day. Being the day after a game, many of the players who had played the night before were mostly doing recovery work. As Rich and I turned the corner to the stadium entrance we crossed paths with Oliver Antman aka “The Finnish Messi” (copyright Christian Wolny) who was heading home for some much needed rest after a tireless display little more than 12 hours previously.

Mohammed Kudus’ match-worn Ghana shirt

We watched from the sidelines as Michael Essien put some of the players through their paces. The Ghaniain former Chelsea, Real Madrid & AC Milan midfielder is one of a handful of former pros who are now part of the setup at Right To Dream & FC Nordsjælland. The opportunity to train with such a legendary figure is not one wasted on this group of players, who were soaking up Essien’s wisdom during the small-sided drills. Even on a rest day, Kian Hansen was watching attentively, clearly taking his captain’s duties seriously. But as much as we’d have liked to watch all of the session, we had an appointment deep inside the stadium with Jacob Schwabe - equipment manager and holder of the title Chefholdleder (‘Chief Team Leader’). Having spent 15 years at the club he’s seen it all and as we walked through hallways lined with signed international shirts of players he’s suited and booted, it quickly became clear he was a guy with many stories and a huge role to play in the making of the young men who pass through the doors at Right To Dream Park.

What started as a 5 minute chat about kits, quickly became an hour long tour around the parts of the stadium mere mortals like me rarely see. From the referees’ room, where a second shower head had been installed to accommodate UEFA’s list of demands, to a room hidden away in an attic that was home to boxes of kit, including some closely-guarded custom made items. Jacob has a job on his hands every time the club releases a new kit to match them with identical compression shorts, shirts and boot tape. Often an exact match doesn’t exist and so he has to find custom solutions - not always easy - so anything left over is kept in case the particular shade (dark green on this occasion) returns! The rules are very particular, so he bristled when he told me the undershirts were the wrong colour on FIFA 23.

Jacob Schwabe in his element

It’s another small detail, but keeping a big inventory of kit at the stadium means that the moment a player arrives at the club, even if just for a trial, on day 1 they can have every piece of gear they need, properly sized and can feel like one of the team immediately. But feeling like part of the team is more than just wearing the kit, it’s about knowing the rules. And one of those is that when you’re done with your kit, it goes in a mesh bag to be collected for washing. Back towards the start of Jacob’s time at FCN, one player, who would go on to be an international, wasn’t playing ball. “He just left his sweaty kit on the floor in front of his locker - but it wasn’t in the bag, so it stayed there.” The stalemate continued, until after 3 days of wearing the same sweaty, unwashed gear, the player in question realised he better play ball and relented, finally using the mesh bag as intended. These are the lessons young players often need to learn, and Jacob plays a key role in ensuring nobody is above the law. The player ended up having a tight relationship with Jacob, insisting he join him as his guest at a Denmark game.

First team kit neatly packed in boxes

As we made our way back to the players’ tunnel we thanked Jacob for how generous he’d been with his time, said our goodbyes and headed back into Copenhagen. A quick pizza pitstop ensued before we headed to the upmarket Østerbro neighbourhood, home to FC København (FCK) and, only a hundred yards or so away, Boldklubben af 1893, better known as B.93.

When I first booked this trip the plan was always to go to B.93 on the Friday, followed by FC København away to newly promoted Hvidovre, the league’s only semi-pro team, (located just to the west of Copenhagen city centre) on the Saturday. Games at this time of the year are often affected by European performances and FCK progressing to the Champions League playoffs meant Saturday’s game moved to Friday and clashed with B.93. I decided I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to see Østerbro Stadion in all its glory so Hvidovre would have to wait.

As we arrived at the stadium a car pulled into a parking spot behind us, and out jumped Pablo Bresciani - a Copenhagen local I have gotten to know over the years and who I last saw before the Copenhagen derby the previous season. As both a member of the B.93 fanclub and a huge FCK fan he too had found himself in a position where a decision had to be made as to which game to attend, but having messaged him in the weeks leading up to the game I think I managed to twist his arm. Pablo showed us the merchandise stall the fan club set out by the main turnstiles, which featured t-shirts with typically dry Danish humour - ‘Referee you have a RESPONSIBILITY’ - and bucket hats, which a few achingly cool twentysomethings pulled up to purchase. We entered the stadium through a foot-operated manual turnstile, a throwback to when I used to watch Arsenal games at the old Highbury Stadium, and entered the sprawling stadium complex.

B.93’s Østerbro Stadion on a balmy Copenhagen Friday evening

You can’t fail to notice that this is a unique stadium. Everything from the Greek statues surrounding the running track (which was still being used by the local athletics club until close to kick-off), to a red-brick clubhouse facing the main stand, to the looming shadow of Parken, home to FC København and the Danish national team, behind one of the goals. The previous season the club had been in the 2nd Division, the third tier of Danish football, and attendances in the region of 500-700 weren’t uncommon. This season, despite a clash with the FCK game, the attendance was close to 2000 and the atmosphere was buzzing, with groups of friends able to sit together in the stands (thanks to no allocated seating) and ample space behind the goal to spread out and enjoy a drink in the evening sunshine.

I spoke to B.93’s Commercial Director, Mikkel Jensen, about the journey the club has been on over the past years.

“Being one of the oldest and most successful teams in Denmark it’s almost the story of a sleeping giant. It’s been 20 years since we’ve been in the Superliga and 15 since we were in the 1st division as we are now. Three years ago we had a new group of investors who really threw their love into returning the club to the success it deserves.”

New investors (who interestingly included Brentford defender Zanka, who came up through the B.93 academy) is a story often heard in football. But what was it about these investors that allowed the club to chart a different course?

Speaking to Mikkel Jensen, Chief Commercial Officer at B.93

“We have a strategy where we play with 70% of players from our academy, something that is quite unique. And we have the ambition to become the opposition to the very cynical type of modern football, by doing things in a new and different way. I really want us to make something that we can be proud of and follow no matter where we are, not being dependent on constantly moving up, which so often is just dependent on money.”

One thing that became abundantly clear on my visit was that the club had left no stone unturned in their desire to create a new and positive stadium experience.

“We only work with partners that have a positive impact on the society around them. We should not depend on the traditional ways of funding and the traditional stadium experience. We should be able to have beer from microbreweries, vegan food, merchandise that looks like something out of a lifestyle magazine rather than a football magazine. [The club] has become something that you can interact with even if you’re not a football fan and you’ll feel welcome.”

It certainly felt to me like the crowd demographic was skewed younger than at most clubs, and I wondered what they had done to attract a new wave of football fans with so much competition on their doorstep?

“I think people felt relieved that there was finally a club doing things in new ways and for the love of football rather than the business side of things. It’s exciting to play on Friday in Copenhagen and have a big party here and if we bring in other aspects besides football it helps attract a lot of young Copenhageners.”

Warming up behind us was the inimitable figure of Nicolaj Thomsen. He made headlines when he moved from the Superliga to the 2nd Division to join B.93 and I was keen to find out how his arrival had helped change the fortunes of the club.

“No doubt Nicolaj has played a big part in the success. On the pitch he’s obviously a brilliant player, but we have quite a few of those. But what he does is amplify the talent and becomes the living proof that it pays off to do things differently and that you can attract footballers who are maybe trying to rediscover their love of the game.”

In a time when fans across the world are becoming more commoditised, this was a refreshing antidote. I left the conversation with Mikkel feeling energised by what they’ve done and why they’ve done it.

Rich ready to roll at the game

While Rich buzzed around the sidelines, camera in hand and donning a press vest, I climbed the stands for the start of the match to join Alex, a friend, fellow Londoner and an honorary Copenhagener after living in the capital for the past few years. Alex and I went on a football expedition into Jylland earlier this year so it was a huge pleasure to grab a few more matches with him, albeit closer to home this time.

On the pitch the first half was not a classic. There were moments of individual quality from both sides, Nicolaj Thomsen was buzzing around energetically and looking to drive the ball forwards every time he got on the ball, while Fredericia had Superliga-level talent of their own in the form of Sofus Berger, on loan from Viborg, as they attempted to break the deadlock.

B.93 v Fredericia at Østerbro Stadion

During the half-time break I located Pablo, situated in the epicentre of noise in section C and squeezed onto the bench next to him. Just as he began schooling me on the ins and outs of B.93’s squad, the game came alive, but not quite in the way the home crowd were hoping for. A red card 5 minutes in for B.93’s Jacob Egeris felt ominous and minutes later, the aforementioned Berger opened the scoring for the visitors. After this point the goals kept coming, and included blunders and goal line decisions (not automated it should be pointed out). The match finished with B.93 defeated heavily, 5-0 the scoreline as the players shook hands with their opponents. Then as a group they approached the home crowd, who were still banging drums and singing their support. I can honestly say I’ve never seen a team lose 5-0 and be saluted by the fans in the way they were. Each player came over and interacted with the crowd, shaking hands, taking photos and giving individual thanks for the genuine affection. The bond between players and fans is unlike anywhere I’ve seen and the fact that win, lose or draw they receive the same welcome is testament to that bond.

With the main man Pablo Bresciani at B.93

I headed down to the running track and around the pitch to the clubhouse, the evening sun a distant memory as the floodlights beamed down on a balmy evening in Copenhagen. I spoke to Anton, one of the guys hammering a snare drum with the supporters club in block C. His passion for the club was infectious and the pride with which he talked about them was impossible to hide. Brought to the stadium as a kid by a friend and his grandfather, who was keen to show the young lads an “alternative to the more commercial side of things” with FC København and Brøndby.

“I still think we beat everyone in terms of atmosphere. It’s the most beautiful stadium in Denmark, I mean look we have Greek statues all around, if you arrive at the right time you’ll hear church bells ringing, it’s just this romantic atmosphere that is so far from the s****y, betting company, commercial madness that is going on at other clubs.”

We then headed up the stairs to the large red brick building that houses, amongst many other things, the B.93 changing rooms. We’d been told that, having sent word ahead of time that we’d love to talk to him, Nicolaj Thomsen would be up for a chat afterwards. But the longer we waited the more I began to think maybe he’d left by another exit and the chance was gone. The floodlights that illuminated the track slowly clicked off, reminding me of the end of a weeknight game at the local astroturf, but then, hair still damp and with a smile that never seems to leave his face these days, out from the changing rooms emerged Nicolaj Thomsen.

A Superliga & Danish Cup champion with AaB back in 2014, he was snapped up by Nantes in Ligue 1 before returning to Denmark with FC København, where he won two further titles. Watching him tear around for 90 minutes on the beautiful surface of the Østerbro Stadion it was like watching the Nicolaj of old. And yet in many ways it’s a miracle he was there at all, at least with a boot bag over his shoulders.

B.93’s Nicolaj Thomsen, living the dream on and off the pitch

“I think I just reached a point in my professional career where I was just a bit fed up. It was too much about money and big egos and I felt like I didn’t like the world of football. I feel like maybe I peaked in my early 20s and ever since then I was just trying to reach that same level. For me I wanted something else - actually I thought of quitting football. But I came here to watch a game with my friends and just fell in love with the stadium, the fans and the vibe - it was truly different to what I had experienced in Denmark before. It reminded me of what football was about when you were younger when you played for the joy of football and being together with your friends. So I went home and thought maybe that could be my way in the industry.”

And has the move lived up to his hopes and expectations?

“It has been way more than I could have ever dreamed of. I feel like this club is so special to me. I’ve only been here just over a season but it feels so deep inside me that it will forever be something I’m grateful for.”

I asked him what is it that makes B.93 so special?

“There’s a very short distance between being a player and the most important person on the board. Everybody listens to one another and I really like that as a club. The new generation of football clubs will be looking more towards clubs like us than the more traditional ones…Another thing I like about this team is that it’s not just old players like me who already finished their careers but there is so much potential, and I feel like I get some extra energy by being involved in their career at this point and can maybe guide them and help them as much as possible.”

Another Aspect is the sustainable clothing label founded by Nicolaj and two friends. I wondered if having this creative endeavour helped keep his love of football alive by giving him another thing to focus on.

“I think I have too much energy to just go home to be on the couch and play PlayStation. I feel like I’ve found the right balance to have found two things I really care about and feel passionate about. Here I’ve got the possibility to fulfil both dreams.”

Copenhagen is a city close to my heart and even from the outside I could tell Nicolaj felt the same way. So I asked him what it was that made him treasure it so much.

“From the first day I set foot in the city I just fell in love with it. People everywhere, good vibes, everybody outside having coffee or having wine, enjoying each other and in the summer time you can go for a swim everywhere. It’s a low-key vibe and nobody is in a rush and I feel like that’s special for a big city.”

Finally I asked him how he’d like his footballing career to be remembered when he decides to hang his boots up for good in the future.

“I think I already have achieved so many things, the last championship in Aalborg was very special, but I think maybe not so much the achievements but more as a person. I want to be remembered as a nice team mate and someone who took care of everybody he ever played with.”

B.93 was everything a football club should aspire to be - inclusive, principled and really just a lot of fun. And in that combination they’ve created something that doesn’t have to compete with the clubs it calls its neighbours on money or trophies, because what they’re about is something else entirely. Last season’s promotion from the 2nd Division showed that success can be had without compromising on the things they hold dear. Fittingly, the very same thing can be said about FC Nordsjælland.

Buoyed by the very evident joy Nicolaj Thomsen is experiencing having re-discovered his love of football, it dawned on me that a similar re-awakening has taken place in my own life. It might not have been one club, or one eureka moment that did it, but Danish football has showed me, through countless people and stories, that there’s more to the game than what I knew before I clicked on that Thomas Delaney documentary many years ago and began this journey.

Having left the stadium we went over the road to one of many bars in the area with a seemingly never ending row of beer taps (and not a single mass market brand in sight) to grab a drink before calling time on another long but hugely rewarding day.

Day 3.

Refreshments at V’Italian

Saturday saw Rich depart for London and with FC København’s match moving back to the Friday I had a free day ahead of me in Copenhagen. I toyed with the idea of a lower league match (Hillerød were playing at Right To Dream Park) or a training session (FCK train in the west of the city in Frederiksberg) but in the end I decided recharging the batteries while seeing some of the city was the way to go. I spent the day eating (can’t recommend V’Italian enough) and shopping (found some Danish national team gear for all the family at Frederiksberg Centret) before meeting Casper, Christian & Alex for a hugely enjoyable dinner in the Carlsberg district. Several hours of football stories later and with a monsoon descending on the city I clambered into the front compartment of Casper’s cargo bike as he pedalled through the pouring rain to the metro station.

Day 4.

My batteries recharged, it dawned on me Sunday was my last full day in Denmark so with the rain long gone I took a morning stroll around a sunny Copenhagen, stopping to grab breakfast and coffee as I put a 6000 step dent in my daily mileage. The final fixture on the schedule was Lyngby v Randers. It’s been a goal of mine to see every Superliga team play live and while I’ve seen Lyngby before, Randers was a new name to be checked off. It also felt like a game that could prove to be significant at the end of the season, with both teams likely to find themselves in the bottom 6.

Lyngby Stadion comes into view

Alex and I jumped on the S-Train to Lyngby, a 15 minute ride from the centre of town, followed by a scenic 10-15 minute walk to the tree-lined stadium. In the summer sun, it’s a stunning scene, particularly sitting at the supporters bar overlooking the training pitches behind the main entrance. Lyngby feels very much a community club, loads of activities for families and a really close connection to the team.

On the pitch, De Kongeblå (The Royal Blues) have started the season with confidence, not dissimilar to last season in fact, but the big difference is they’ve been able to turn that confidence into some points. Last season they failed to win until the final match before the winter break in November. This season they only had to wait until the third round, with an emphatic 4-1 win over FC Midtjylland. The ‘Great Escape’ as they’re calling it, Lyngby’s improbable Superliga survival in 2022-23, secured in the very last game of the season, has unquestionably had a huge positive effect on the squad.

They done it, and got the t-shirt

The home side were without Alfred Finnbogason - the iconic Icelandic striker had been sold just days earlier to KAS Eupen in the Belgian Pro League. I asked manager Freyr Alexandersson afterwards whether it had been part of the club’s plan.

“It caught us all by surprise, it was not the plan. Not from our perspective and not from his perspective. But it was really difficult for him to turn down a good two-year contract in a decent club on a little bit of a higher level than the Danish league. He has delivered in all aspects on and off the field, as a person as a leader, we got everything out of him. I’d have loved to have him for the whole season but getting a transfer fee for a 35 year old who wants to go, you just have to embrace that and look forward.”

To replace him, the club had brought in another Icelandic player, Andri Gudjohnson, son of another Icelandic legend, Eidur. Alexandersson was previously with the Icelandic national team and clearly he holds a big sway with his fellow countrymen.

Randers meanwhile had been shorn of one of their midfield linchpins in Lasse Berg Johnsson, sold to Malmö in Sweden, while tricky winger Tosin Kehinde also departed for pastures new in Ferencváros.

On the pitch, the first half was a cagey, largely forgettable affair with only one shot on target. Willy Kumado impressed for the hosts, a former FC Nordsjælland player with speed and technique in abundance, while new Dutch centre-back Wessel Dammers looked a steely presence in the Randers backline.

Lyngby v Randers at Lyngby Stadion

In the second half Tochi Chukwuani, another former FCN talent, thought he’d put Lyngby ahead on the 65th minute, deflecting a corner home from close range. VAR did its thing and a handball was (rightly) given but the disallowed goal seemed to hand the impetus to the home team going into the final 20 minutes of the match. A close range header from Randers striker Marvin Egho was smartly saved by Kikkenborg but the away side failed to threaten beyond this point as the visitors dug in to try to take home a much needed point and clean sheet. But as so often is the case when a team tries to settle for the draw, heartbreak came for Rasmus Bertelsen’s men as on the 86th minute an inswinging corner was punched meekly by Patrick Carlgren straight to Lyngby captain Marcel Rømer, whose fierce drive was deflected in by Frederik Gytkjær to send the home crowd into rapturous celebrations.

Randers played in a highlighter-green kit, but the only thing the game highlighted was how badly they need a goalscorer. At the time of writing (7 games in) they are the lowest scoring team in the league, with only 6 goals scored and a whopping 17 conceded. Given they boast last season’s best goalkeeper statistically in Patrick Carlgren those numbers make for worrying reading for Randers fans.

As the full-time whistle sounded, Alex and I raced down to the pitch to head for the mixed zone and stood metres from the players as they celebrated with the fans. I talked earlier about the close connection they share with one another and it was so evident, with young fans lining up around the tunnel and players taking time to give out high fives, sign autographs and take selfies. These are the kind of interactions that are often impossible for Premier League fans to experience but ones that make lifelong memories for the kids involved.

Players and fans celebrate as one

In the media food chain I’m well aware that my place is right at the bottom, so I waited patiently as the TV interviews and newspapers got their interviews, before grabbing a few minutes with Freyr Alexandersson. With his black Adidas tracksuit and signature baseball cap - not a fashion statement but a migraine prevention measure as I learned from him - he’s impossible to miss and his enthusiasm for the club and the game is palpable.

With Lyngby captain Marcel Rømer & manager Freyr Alexandersson

Naturally I asked him about The Great Escape. After a start to the season where the points tally maybe didn’t reflect the league position, I asked him what he did over the winter break to rally the team.

“It was a long process. We were lucky to get the win against Silkeborg in the last round before the winter break, then we had a short meeting with some facts about how we’d played in those first four months, so the players could understand that they had performed at a decent level and weren’t as bad as the table suggested. I gave them that as a Christmas gift before they left.”

He talked about the importance of giving the players a holiday, a break from the mental and physical toil of the season. When they returned the hard work began.

“Me and my coaching staff had prepared some guidance through pre-season and the remaining 15 games - how we’re going to do this and why is it possible. We talked about the why in football in general - why are we doing this? What does it mean if we stay up, both for them as players and us as a club. We went a little into the spiritual side of football - and they just embraced it and took ownership and it gradually built up from there.”

During the game the mild-mannered Alexandersson picked up a yellow card from the referee. I asked him what he had said to warrant such a punishment.

“I didn’t say a word - and he didn’t say a word to me! I just looked into his beautiful blue eyes when I got the yellow card.”

Before we left there was one more person we had to see. “Henry!” shouted Lux from the edge of the tunnel, cigarette in mouth, as Lyngby’s legendary kitman and team leader gave me a warm welcome back to the stadium. I interviewed Lux the previous summer as part of the ‘Behind The Scenes’ series and we had exchanged football shirts last year at an epic 3-3 draw between Lyngby and FC Midtjylland. He is a guy who bleeds Lyngby and, like his counterpart Jacob at FCN, knows every small detail at the club, making him a treasure trove of interesting anecdotes. Alex and I chatted to him about the start of the season, the design of the new kits and the overall vibe around the club post-Great Escape, before bidding our farewells and wandering leisurely back to the station.

Before I left there was just time to grab a farewell coffee with Sture Sandø, another footballing friend I’ve made over the years but had never met until then. Anyone who can talk football for hours is alright with me, and whether its his beloved AGF, the national team or - on this occasion - Napoli, he has stories for days. Of course no trip would be complete without a logistical hurdle, so the metro being closed forced me into an inordinately expensive cab ride to the airport to conclude the trip, wallet slightly lighter than I had planned for.

With three games and one training session in the bag, this particular road trip was a wrap. And while my legs were aching, I was filled with energy and enthusiasm by what I’d seen. In these few days I’d seen that it was possible for modern football to be about something other than just rank profiteering and that even at the top level it could be about community, development, innovation and togetherness. A heady tonic indeed, and one I badly needed. So while modern football often gets a tough rap, look towards Denmark and you might just find yourself, like me, reconsidering that label.