Gronkjaer's strike books Bulgaria's ticket home

Bulgaria 0 Denmark

To adapt a golfing phrase, you cannot win a tournament in the first two games but you can certainly throw it away and that is exactly what Bulgaria did here in Braga yesterday afternoon.

To adapt a golfing phrase, you cannot win a tournament in the first two games but you can certainly throw it away and that is exactly what Bulgaria did here in Braga yesterday afternoon. By losing their second Group C match they became the second team after Russia to be eliminated from Euro 2004 and picked a sorry way to mark 10 years after their international high watermark, when they progressed to the semi-finals of the World Cup in the United States.

They went out in disgrace as well, with Celtic's Stilian Petrov sent off eight minutes from time for a second yellow card. They picked up a further five bookings, most of them coming in a flurry in the last ten minutes as they were enraged by the refusal of a penalty when Zdravko Lazarov fell under a challenge on the edge of the area. To rub salt into their wound, Jesper Gronkjaer then got on the score-sheet in injury time after a one-two with Jon Dahl Tomasson, curling his shot low into the bottom corner.

Having failed to score so far, few will shed tears for Plamen Markov and his team, least of all Denmark, for whom this win, set up by Tomasson's first-half goal, represented a major step forward to reach the quarter-finals. However, Sweden await in their final group game on Tuesday, a Scandinavian derby which will assume massive proportions. Markov at least apologised for his team's behaviour, saying: "The players' behaviour was not adequate."

Morten Olsen, the Danish manager, was naturally pleased, saying: "As a team we defended well and when we attacked we used the width of the pitch to create chances. But we didn't take them until Tomasson's goal. It was a little too easy."

Gronkjaer's representatives are in talks with Birmingham City after Chelsea accepted an undisclosed bid for the winger yesterday. He only had to wait 23 minutes to parade his talents to his prospective employers after starting this game from the substitutes bench.

The Danish winger has had a torrid time in the last week, having to go home to attend his mother's funeral. Despite having missed eight days' training, Gronkjaer was called on to replace Dennis Rommedahl ­ the PSV Eindhoven wide-man picked up an early injury ­ and was given a moving welcome from the vociferous and plentiful Danish supporters.

"It's tough to be joyful after what I went through in recent days," Gronkjaer said after the game. "Scoring goals is a great feeling, but the sense of losing someone so close is much stronger."

With the Danes dominating, Bulgaria were unable to gain a foothold in this new ground. Blandly termed the Municipal stadium, it belies the stunning setting which has led to a magnificent modern arena hewn out of the Monte Castro. But as a result, it only comprises two stands beside each flank of the pitch, with, incongruously, a grassy hillock behind one goal and more rock behind the other.

The east Europeans had lost their opening fixture against Sweden 5-0, their first in the finals of a tournament since they bowed out of the 1998 World Cup with a 6-1 defeat to Spain. With that sort of form Denmark were expected to help themselves to goals but they were denied until a minute before half-time.

By then the Danes had just survived two Bulgarian chances in as many minutes when first Marian Hristov and then Martin Petrov failed to test Thomas Sorensen from short range.

They paid the price straight after when Thomas Gravesen found Martin Jorgensen, who drew the goalkeeper out of position and passed to Tomasson who rolled the ball home.

Prior to then the AC Milan and former Newcastle striker had been the main culprit for Denmark, missing a glaring opportunity. Five minutes before he scored, he was put clear by Gravesen but after rounding the goalkeeper he hit his shot into the side netting. His fellow striker Ebbe Sand hit the crossbar in injury time, sparing the Bulgarians further punishment.