UEFA Nations League clash live on Sky Sports on Sunday
Wednesday 5 September 2018 14:41, UK
Denmark have been forced to name a severely under-strength squad for their Nations League match against Wales this weekend, due to the ongoing dispute between the Danish FA (DBU) and the players' union (Spillerne).
The vast majority of players are unavailable, including the entirety of the squad which reached the last 16 of the World Cup this summer.
As a result, the DBU has been forced to call upon players from the third and fourth tiers of their domestic league, as well as four who played in the 2016 Futsal World Cup.
The disagreement between the DBU and Spillerne concerns commercial rights, with the two parties negotiating for several months to try and resolve the issue.
However, Spillerne accused the DBU of withdrawing from talks on Friday last week without an agreement.
The World Players' Union FIFPro backed the players of the Denmark national team in a statement, which said: "FIFPro would like to express complete solidarity with the Danish national team players as they seek to negotiate fair and proportionate terms with the national football association.
"The Danish players have acted responsibly throughout these negotiations and FIFPro strongly believes their offer to extend the terms of the previous deal on a temporary basis is in the best interests of all football stakeholders."
"The Danish national team players have our full backing," FIFPro Secretary General Theo van Seggelen said. "We strongly support their offer of a temporary compromise as the best way forward."
If UEFA deem the squad to be unfit to compete in the Nations League, Denmark could face expulsion from competitions run by the governing body.
They were previously fined and threatened with a ban following a similar dispute with their female players that led to a World Cup qualifier being cancelled.
Denmark play Slovakia in a friendly in Trnava on Wednesday, before opening their UEFA Nations League campaign on Sunday against Wales in Aarhus, live on Sky Sports.
Denmark squad
Goalkeepers: Morten Bank (Avarta), Victor Vobbe Larsen (TPI), Christoffer Haagh (Jaegersborg Boldklub)
Defenders: Christian Bannis (TPI), Mads Priisholm Bertelsen (TPI), Christian Bommelund Christensen (Jaegersborg Boldklub), Victor Hansen (Frederikssund), Nicolai Johansen (Vanlose), Daniel Nielsen (Vanlose), Kasper Skræp (TPI)
Midfielders: Rasmus Gaudin (Vanlose), Adam Fogt (Kastrup), Anders Hunsballe (Greve), Oskar Højbye (Vanlose), Christopher Jakobsen (Hillerod), Rasmus Johanson (HIK), Kevin Jorgensen (Jaegersborg Boldklub), Kasper Kempel (Skovshoved), Simon Vollesen (Birkerod)
Strikers: Anders Fonss (TPI), Troels Cillius Nielsen (Birkerod), Christian Offenberg (Avarta), Daniel Holm Sorensen (Skovshoved), Louis Veis (Jaegersborg Boldklub)
