Town defender Jonas Knudsen has been named in Denmark’s 23-man squad which will travel to the World Cup in Russia this summer.
Manager Ã…ge Hareide confirmed his final travelling party this evening, a day ahead of tomorrow’s deadline. A 27-strong squad trained in Helsingør last week and drew 0-0 with Sweden in a friendly last night, a game in which Knudsen was an unused sub.
In March, Knudsen won his third full international cap in a 0-0 friendly draw with Chile, his first international appearance since joining Town in the summer of 2015.
Speaking in April following that match, Knudsen said: "It would mean everything to me to get to a World Cup. When you are a little kid it is something you dream about, playing for your national team in the World Cup. There is nothing better than that.”
Denmark, who play their final friendly at home to Mexico next Saturday, will face Peru, Australia and France in the group stages of the finals.
If he features for Denmark in Russia, Knudsen (or Bartosz Bialkowki if he is named in the Poland squad which is due to be named tomorrow and makes an appearance first) will become the 10th Blues player to play at a World Cup finals.
John Wark and Alan Brazil represented Scotland in 1982 when Mick Mills was England’s captain with Paul Mariner and Terry Butcher also in Ron Greenwood’s side.
Bontcho Guentchev featured for Bulgaria in 1994, Matt Holland was in Mick McCarthy’s Republic of Ireland team in 2002, Slovenian defender Amir Karic was still a Town player at the same tournament and most recently Tommy Smith played for New Zealand in 2010.
George Burley was in the Scotland squad in 1982 but didn't play, while John Elsworthy was named in the Wales 22 for the 1958 World Cup in Sweden but the FAW couldn't afford to send a full squad and the Blues' left-half remained at home.
Denmark: Kasper Schmeichel (Leicester City), Frederik Rønnow (Brøndby IF), Jonas Lössl (Huddersfield Town), Henrik Dalsgaard (Brentford), Simon Kjær (Sevilla), Jens Stryger Larsen (Udinese), Mathias Jørgensen (Huddersfield Town), Jannik Vestergaard (Borussia Mönchengladbach), Andreas Christensen (Chelsea), Jonas Knudsen, Ipswich Town, William Kvist (FC København), Thomas Delaney (Werder Bremen), Christian Eriksen (Tottenham Hotspur), Lukas Lerager (Bordeaux), Michael Krohn-Dehli (Deportivo), Lasse Schöne (Ajax), Pione Sisto (Celta Vigo), Nicolai Jørgensen (Feyenoord), Yussuf Poulsen (RB Leipzig), Viktor Fischer (FC København), Kasper Dolberg (Ajax), Andreas Cornelius (Atalanta), Martin Braithwaite (Bordeaux).