The dispute surrounding Denmark's national football team could be solved in time for their UEFA Nations League clash with Wales, according to Danish second division player Rasmus Johansson. Denmark took the unusual step of fielding a team comprised of lower-league and futsal players for Wednesday's international friendly in Slovakia amid a contract dispute with the country's football association. The makeshift team lost 3-0 in Trnava without members of the squad who led them to the last 16 of the World Cup, but the likes of Christian Eriksen and Kasper Schmeichel could be back for Sunday's game against Wales in Aarhus. 3:20 An entirely weakened Denmark side, filled mostly with third-division and futsal players, lost 3-0 in Slovakia on Wednesday Johansson, a second division player in Denmark who made his debut in the defeat to Slovakia, expects that to be his last appearance for his country. Speaking after the game, Johansson said: "I do not expect us to play on Sunday. I think they've found something inside, but you never know. Live UEFA Nations League "The battle on Sunday means more than today. There is more at stake and I assume they send the national team that usually plays and that they will sort it out. They should at least soon. But I do not expect us to play that match on Sunday. "They said they do not know anything yet, so it could be either way. No one knows yet."<doc-sep>The unresolved row between the Danish FA and their players over image rights looks set to have an effect on the Republic of Ireland's UEFA Nations League prospects after a number of internationals returned to their clubs today. The DBU have sent an uncapped team composed of futsal and domestic third/fourth-division players to Slovakia for tonight's friendly in Trnava. Hopes that the situation could be resolved in time for Denmark's home Nations League clash with Wales on Sunday are now in doubt, which would hand Ryan Giggs' team a huge competitive advantage in the three-team group that also features Ireland. Not fulfilling the fixture could result in a four-year ban from UEFA competitions. "Most of us, if not all, have returned home to our clubs," full-back Nicolai Boilesen told TV2 Sport today. "We can not sit and twiddle our thumbs anymore. It has been strange." "We have been ready all the time. We'd rather play and we cannot do more. If they do not want to take the phone and negotiate, it will be difficult. There's got to be two to tango." We need your consent to load this Instagram contentWe use Instagram to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review their details and accept them to load the content.Manage Preferences The dispute centres on how the DBU can use the players in sponsorships that might conflict with individual deals, for example, asking Nike athlete Christian Eriksson to appear alone in advertisements for national team shirt-manafacturer Hummel rather than as part of a group. The Danish squad offered to play this week's games under a previous agreement and conclude negotiations later in the month but that was turned down by the FA, who seem determined to play hardball. "An offer has been made, which I hope the players will consider carefully and thoroughly. If the players cannot accept the offer, then we'll have a serious situation again on Sunday, because the offer will not be different," said DBU president Jesper Møller. TV2 journalist Jacob Qvirin thinks the standoff could go either way. "The Danish FA has said that they’re not going to continue negotiations until next week," he told RTÉ Sport. "I think they wanted to send a statement. This far and no longer. "At the same time, they say that they hope it’s only going to be one game. "I think their hope is that the players come back and say ‘we want to play that match against Wales because that’s a game that matters’. "Right now, it looks like it’s going to be this ‘B team’, but let’s see. I don’t think anybody expected it could go this far and there are a lot of ways it could end." Danish fans at the World Cup Qvirin believes that the Danish public are split on the matter, which some see as personal posturing as much as an issue of principles. "The director of the Danish FA, Claus Bretton-Meyer, and the main negotiator for the Spillerforeningen (the players’ union), Mads Oland are two big figures in this. "Some people think this is not the Danish FA against the players, this is Mads Oland against Claus Bretton-Meyer. It’s like a political fight between them instead." "There’s a little more sympathy with the players' union but most people just want them to find a solution. "There are people saying ‘Come on, these players are our stars. Just give them what they want, they represent our national team, they need this'. "Then there are also people saying ‘they earn millions in their clubs, why do they have to get money for playing with the national team?’ As for tonight's friendly, which the frustrated Slovak FA is now charging just €1 admission for, Denmark is bracing itself for a record defeat - though unusually large viewing figures are expected given the novelty value of the selection. The 'B' team will be managed by Euro 1992 hero John Jensen as the DBU presumably didn't want Åge Hareide's relationship with the players to suffer. "The biggest defeat so far for a Danish national team is 8-0 to Germany in 1937," says Qvirin. "People expect that is going to be beaten tonight. "For the Danish viewers, this is more funny. It’s like David against Goliath in some way."<doc-sep>The former Arsenal midfielder John Jensen has answered a desperate SOS call to lead a Denmark team made up of unknown lower league and Futsal players for their matches on Wednesday against Slovakia and Wales on Sunday. A dispute between the Danish Football Association (DBU) and the Denmark players over commercial image rights has escalated to the point where all the leading players, including Tottenham Hotspur’s Christian Eriksen, Chelsea’s Andreas Christensen and Leicester City’s Kasper Schmeichel, are refusing to sign a new agreement with the national team. Manager Age Hareide has also been temporarily stood down by the DBU, who have instead been working to field an alternative team under the management of Jensen. Players from the entire Danish Super League have been under pressure to show solidarity with the players’ union over a dispute that centres on the extent to which the DBU can use individual players in its own sponsorship and marketing campaigns. It all means that players from the Danish second division and even Futsal league were in a squad that arrived in Slovakia on Tuesday. The squad was not confirmed until after it travelled.<doc-sep>
The former Arsenal midfielder John Jensen will take charge of Denmark’s Nations League opener against Wales after the row which has rocked Danish football took an extraordinary twist. Denmark’s preparations for the game in Aarhus on Sunday are in turmoil over the dispute concerning the players’ commercial rights. The Danish Football Association (DBU) is set to field a team consisting of domestic players rather than Premier League-based stars such as Christian Eriksen and Kasper Schmeichel. Denmark are playing Slovakia in a friendly in Trnava on Wednesday and the DBU director Claus Bretton-Meyer told the Danish Broadcasting Corporation that it had selected a squad drawn from the first and second divisions of the domestic league. It has also been reported in Denmark that members of the national Futsal squad will feature in the squad. The DBU confirmed the 53-year-old Jensen will be in charge of the Slovakia and Wales games rather than Age Hareide. He said: “When I say yes to help it’s because I feel very strong for the national team as an institution, and because the most important thing must be that the games will be played after all.” Jensen, who is noted for scoring in Denmark’s Euro 1992 final victory against Germany, spent eight months coaching in the Premier League at Blackburn in 2011. He went on to become a consultant at Brondby and spent fours years in charge of the Danish club Fremad Amager between 2014 and 2018. “I just hope to help us get through the two matches and that the parties find a solution as soon as possible,” Jensen added. “The national team has meant infinitely much to me in my career and in my life. It hurts to follow this course, and I hope my contribution can help mitigate the negative consequences.” Eriksen had earlier called for a truce in the row and said Denmark’s players were willing to play the two games under the terms of the old commercial rights agreement. “We have to solve this conflict now, not just digging the ditches deeper,” the Tottenham midfielder said. “Let’s renew the old deal by one month. Then we have organised relationships right now and we are prepared to play the international matches this week. Sign up and we will sit on the plane immediately. We are ready and we will play.”