Midtjylland 'minnows' leave City sore
Friday, August 15, 2008
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Goalscorer Danny Olsen "got the feeling" Manchester City FC had underestimated his side as FC Midtjylland earned a surprise 1-0 UEFA Cup success in England.
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Improved chances
Olsen scored the only goal at the City of Manchester Stadium on Thursday night as the Danish league leaders upset their Premier League opponents in the second qualifying round. "I got the feeling they underestimated us as we were standing in the tunnel before the match," said the 23-year-old. "This is fantastic though. Before the match our chances of progressing might have been 20 per cent – now they are 50/50."
Tremendous night
Midfielder Mikkel Thygesen, who laid the ball off for Olsen's 15th-minute strike, added: "This was the greatest moment of my FCM career. We fought like hell and ran and ran. This win leaves us in a good position ahead of the second leg, but we will have to remember that we are playing against a Premier League team, so nothing is decided yet."
'Their problem'
Thursday proved to be a great night all round for Danish sides in the UEFA Cup second qualifying round, with FC Nordsjælland, Brøndby IF and FC København also victorious. Midtjylland were forced to hold on at times, however, and City hit the bar twice through Daniel Sturridge and Martin Petrov. Not that manager Mark Hughes cut the home side any slack. "Perhaps we were a bit behind them in terms of sharpness and match fitness but that is no excuse," said the former Welsh international, whose team will have to overturn the deficit in Denmark on 28 August. "In the first half we had too many unforced errors. We needed to be more dynamic, show more personality, and try to drive the play."